On the go: Secondary legislation necessary for the implementation of the McCloud remedy is on track to be published by April 1, and another round of consultations is due before October, the government has confirmed.
The Public Accounts Committee published a scathing report in June 2021 criticising the government’s handling of public sector pensions, its failure to foresee the age discrimination arising from the 2015 reforms, and the Treasury’s plans to make scheme members foot the bill for “its own mistake”.
The report made a number of recommendations, one of which was that the Treasury should update the committee on the work it has done to “rebuild the trust” lost through its mishandling of the 2015 reforms.
In late February, Tom Scholar, permanent secretary to the Treasury, wrote to PAC chair Dame Meg Hillier confirming that the legislative work behind the McCloud remedy is under way and should be completed by April 1.
“Towards the end of 2021, departments launched consultations on changes to individual scheme regulations to implement the prospective McCloud remedy. These consultations have now closed, and departments are considering the feedback received,” Scholar wrote.
“Departments will publish consultation response documents over February and March, and any confirmed changes to scheme regulations will be implemented through secondary legislation by April 1 2022.
“Retrospective changes to scheme regulations through secondary legislation are required to be in place by October 1 2023 to ensure that the retrospective remedy is implemented no later than this point. Departments will consult on the content of these regulations in due course,” he added.
