The year end may be fast approaching, but there is still much work ongoing in the pensions industry, as this week saw several organisations launch consultations on various pension issues.

The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) launched a consultation on proposed revisions to Technical Actuarial Standard (TAS) 300: Pensions, seeking to reflect recent developments in pension scheme funding.

The changes aim to support those carrying out actuarial work under the new DB Funding Code, including provisions relating to advice arising from the improved funding levels of DB schemes.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) also published a consultation on proposals to introduce targeted support for pensions as part of the Advice/Guidance Boundary Review.

The pensions and advice industries broadly welcomed the proposals but warned there will be issues that would be challenging to overcome.

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) also launched a consultation - on proposed amendments to the NHS Pension Scheme - to ensure it continues to help the NHS attract and retain the staff needed to deliver high-quality care for patients.

Shifting the focus to the DB landscape, analysis from The Pensions Regulator (TPR) revealed that the DB and hybrid pensions sector continued to shrink at a yearly rate of 3 per cent in 2024.

TPR's analysis showed that the number of schemes reduced from 7,300 in 2012 to 5,190 in 2024.

Despite this, the combined IAS19 pensions surplus for DB UK pension schemes of FTSE 100 companies increased to over £65bn in November, according to LCP's Pensions Explorer.

Healthy DB pension scheme funding levels are expected to continue in 2025, Legal & General (L&G) said, with average UK pension risk transfer (PRT) market volumes predicted to reach £45bn per annum.

These funding improvements have also made DB schemes more willing to consider their endgame options rather than move automatically to a buyout, with research from Russell Investments revealing that almost a third (30 per cent) of UK DB pension schemes have yet to decide their endgame target.

But Hymans Robertson said flexibility was "key" when selecting a run-on strategy for a DB scheme, arguing that insurance should always remain possible if things change.

DB superfunds could be an increasingly popular option for DB schemes too, as industry experts suggested that news of the first superfund transaction with a scheme with an active sponsor could bring the role of superfunds into "new focus" for a wider scope of trustees and corporates alike.

However, the outlook is bleaker for defined contribution (DC) schemes, as the expected future living standard in retirement provided by DC savings fell for young savers in Q3, following "flat" investment returns, Aon's UK DC pension tracker revealed.

According to Quilter, major issues are also continuing to "plague" pension transfer regulations three years after their introduction.

A new freedom of information (FOI) data from the Money and Pensions Service (Maps) showed that 27,900 out of a total of 33,917 amber flags raised were due to either an unknown reason or a "potentially low risk" transfer relating to overseas investments.

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