Overview

This bill makes amendments to the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Bill, primarily focusing on strengthening the protection of pension schemes during company insolvency. It also revives a power to regulate sales to connected persons during administration and modifies certain regulatory procedures.

Description

The key amendments enhance the involvement of the Pensions Regulator and the Pension Protection Fund (PPF) in insolvency proceedings. In cases of company insolvency involving occupational pension schemes (excluding money purchase schemes), the amendments grant the Pensions Regulator and the PPF Board additional rights and powers. These include the ability to make applications to the court on behalf of the trustees or managers of the scheme and, subject to regulations, the ability to exercise the trustees' or managers' creditor rights, potentially to the exclusion of, or in addition to, those exercised by the trustees themselves. This ensures better protection of pension assets for scheme members.

The bill also revives temporary powers (expiring in June 2021 unless exercised earlier) to regulate sales of company assets to connected persons in Great Britain and Northern Ireland, granting additional regulatory oversight and control over such transactions.

Furthermore, the bill amends the process by which certain regulations are approved, switching from a "negative resolution" to a "made affirmative" procedure, thereby requiring active approval by Parliament or devolved legislatures before the regulations can take effect. This process provides additional parliamentary scrutiny of the regulations

Government Spending

The bill's financial implications are not explicitly stated within the provided text, however it is likely that there will be additional government spending related to oversight of the scheme, but the exact amount cannot be determined without further information.

Groups Affected

• Companies undergoing insolvency: The amendments will impact how insolvency proceedings are managed, particularly regarding pension scheme liabilities.
• Pension scheme members: The amendments aim to improve the protection of their pension benefits in the event of their employer's insolvency.
• Pensions Regulator and PPF: The bill significantly increases their powers and involvement in corporate insolvency cases involving pension schemes.
• Trustees and managers of pension schemes: Their roles and powers will be altered to reflect the increased oversight by the Regulator and PPF.
• Connected persons of insolvent companies: Restrictions and oversight are introduced regarding potential transactions between such persons and the insolvent company during administration.
• Parliament and devolved legislatures: Changes to the regulatory approval process shift the balance of power requiring affirmative approval for regulations.

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