It has been another busy week in pensions, with the Pension Schemes Bill successfully passing the report stage and third reading in the House of Commons, and the government's consultation on collective defined contribution (CDC) closing.

Earlier this week, the government tabled further amendments to the Pension Schemes Bill, including amendments to index for inflation on pre-97 benefits in the Pension Protection Fund (PPF) and to remove the PPF admin levy.

During Wednesday's third reading of the bill, Pensions Minister, Torsten Bell, also confirmed he will bring forward legislation to allow the government to develop statutory guidance for the trust-based private pensions sector.

The goal of this legislation will be to provide practical support to trustees about how to comply with their existing duties while considering wider factors, including what the government mean by systemic risks and standards of living.

In other major news this week, industry responses were shared ahead of the conclusion of the government's consultation on retirement collective defined contribution (CDC).

In particular, industry experts expressed a consensus that work on CDC should be accelerated to ensure it dovetails with the guided retirement duty, which is expected to come into force in early 2027.

Yet broader concerns about the final detail of the regime remain, and certain pension professionals have warned that benefit illustrations for retirement collective defined contribution (CDC) plans must be accurate and not misleading.

In other government news and parliamentary updates, the government confirm that it will go ahead with the proposals previously outlined for the Firefighters' Pension Scheme, with some changes made following industry feedback.

MPs raised concerns this week, with the Treasury Committee launching an inquiry into the government’s approach to financial inclusion.

The inquiry will assess whether ministers understand the scale of financial exclusion across the UK and whether the government’s Financial Inclusion Strategy sets out the right measures to tackle it. The Treasury Committee warned that efforts to widen access to financial services “must not be a box-ticking exercise”.

In a landmark development, the Stagecoach Group Pension Scheme (SGPS) agreed a first-of-its-kind deal that will see Aberdeen replace Stagecoach as its sponsoring employer, offering greater long-term security for over 22,000 members.

As part of the arrangement, Aberdeen will assume responsibility for scheme funding and the management of SGPS' assets; however, the scheme, which is in significant surplus, will continue to ‘run-on’ under Aberdeen’s sponsorship.

There were also several major acquisitions announced, including the acquisition of First Actuarial by Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. and Heywood Pension Technologies reaching an agreement to be acquired by the Dutch-headquartered Keylane, both for undisclosed amounts.

Additionally, Sky News reported that WTW has entered exclusive talks with NatWest and is working towards an agreement that would see it take ownership of NatWest Cushon.

The defined benefit (DB) market remained active this week. The Steamship Insurance Management Services Limited Pension and Assurance Scheme completed a £55m buy-in with Royal London, and two CF Fertilisers UK pension schemes completed a combined £265m buy-in with M&G.

Meanwhile, the PPF's latest Purple Book provided an update that the net surplus of the UK's DB schemes remains strong at £214bn, and the proportion of assets held in annuities has reached a record high after surging by nearly 13 per cent.

This week also saw the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) reveal proposals to ensure that environmental, social and governance (ESG) ratings are transparent, reliable, and comparable.

The reforms form part of a new FCA consultation, which is open until 31 March 2026, and follow the government's decision to bring ESG ratings within the FCA’s remit for the first time.

In addition to this, there were some substantial updates provided on ongoing issues in the pension sector, including the High Court scheduling an urgent case management hearing to consider the government’s recent decision to revisit its refusal to compensate women affected by state pension age changes, less than a week before the planned judicial review on 9-10 December.

Additionally, Capita Pension Solutions announced it had reached a voluntary recognition agreement with the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS), as the transfer of Civil Service Pension Scheme (CSPS) administration from MyCSP Ltd to Capita Pension Solutions began on Monday. This update follows months of scrutiny and union concern over the transition.

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