The Pensions Regulator’s draft guidance on climate change reporting and governance is not sufficiently clear on what constitutes compliance, and the watchdog needs to provide clarity on its approach to discretionary penalties, the Society of Pension Professionals has warned.

Industry bodies including the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association, the Association of British Insurers and the Investment Association will “develop the case” for defined contribution schemes to invest in less-liquid assets, as part of a push to secure “long-term value” for its members.

This week – TPR drops some of its new code of practice requirements, calls for government to change public sector schemes pension increases, a Morrisons bidding war, and EY's fine for Stagecoach audit failings.

EY has been fined £3.5m and given a “severe reprimand” by the Financial Reporting Council, in part for failing to meet requirements when auditing Stagecoach’s defined benefit scheme obligations.

On the go: The Pensions Ombudsman is expecting demand to increase by 10 per cent in light of Covid-19, but is already facing a “significant queue of work” caused by the pandemic, according to its 2021-24 corporate plan.

The Pensions Regulator’s combined code of practice has been dealt a blow after widespread industry criticism forced it to scrap new rules on unregulated investments, while the fate of its proposed “own risk assessment” remains uncertain.

On the go: Civil servants on the Isle of Man are to be given a choice between an existing defined benefit scheme and a new defined contribution arrangement, the island’s government has announced.

The Association of Consulting Actuaries is calling on the government to change the way it calculates pension increases for unfunded public sector schemes, proposing that these are based on economic growth rather than inflation, as this would be “fairer” for future generations of taxpayers.

A new report from Punter Southall has revealed the best-performing defined contribution default providers during Covid-19, with Nest and L&G leading in the consolidation phase, Smart Pension topping cumulative performance in the growth phase, and L&G Multi Asset doing best in the retirement phase.

The Pensions Regulator has announced its intent to prosecute the former owner of Norton Motorcycles for illegally investing money into the business from three pensions schemes of which he was the sole trustee.