The MGN Pension Scheme – which was raided by Robert Maxwell in the 1980s – has secured a £150m buy-in covering 1,300 of its pensioner members.
The buy-in was provided by Just Group and completed in November. According to a press release from the insurer, the deal has been structured to make it easier for future buy-ins to be transacted.
It follows an agreement on contributions struck in March between the MGN Pension Scheme and Reach, the scheme’s sponsor, after the Pensions Regulator (TPR) intervened.
TPR engaged with trustees and the sponsor after the two parties failed to agree on a contribution schedule following the scheme’s triennial valuations in 2019 and 2022. An agreement was eventually reached amid the threat of enforcement action from the regulator.
Reaching a funding level ready for insurance is a significant landmark for the MGN Pension Scheme. In the 1980s, it was one of the Mirror Group’s pension schemes raided for cash by then-owner Robert Maxwell, a scandal that eventually led to a major overhaul of defined benefit regulations in the 1990s.
How TPR helped secure funding boost for newspaper scheme
Publishing giant Reach has agreed to increase its annual contributions to the MGN Pension Scheme by more than £5m a year until January 2028 following an intervention by the Pensions Regulator. Read more
Quentin Woodley, chair of the trustee board, said: “We are pleased to have completed this pensioner buy-in with Just. It is a significant step on our goal to providing long-term security for members’ pensions.
“LCP ran a thorough selection process to help the trustee choose Just and we worked closely with the sponsor to agree a transaction structure that achieved all parties’ objectives.”
As well as LCP, which was the lead adviser to the scheme, Travers Smith provided legal advice to the trustees and Aon was the scheme actuary. Hymans Robertson and Slaughter and May advised Reach, with Gowlings advising Just Group.
Kishan Radia, business development manager at Just Group, said: “We’re very pleased to have completed this initial pensioner-only buy-in and to provide long-term security for more than 1,000 members. We look forward to working in partnership with the scheme’s trustees on their de-risking journey over the coming years.”
Charlie Finch, partner at LCP, said: “Just met the key selection criteria for the trustees and was pragmatic and commercial in the negotiation approach.
“We are working with a large number of schemes to implement buy-ins as the market continues to be highly active with strong competition for schemes of all sizes.”
