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R (Greyhound Board of Great Britain Ltd) v Welsh Ministers [2026] EWHC 670 (Admin) What are the practical implications of this case? The ruling reinforces the constitutional divide between the courts and the legislature. It explains that the scheme and framework of the Government of Wales Act 2006 (GWA 2006) embody that separation of powers, and that any judicial attempt to recognise and enforce a common law obligation on Welsh Ministers to consult prior to introducing legislation in the Senedd would trespass upon that boundary. This is not a departure from established principle; case law has already upheld comparable rules for lawmakers in Scotland and at Westminster. However, this is the first express confirmation of the position for Welsh lawmakers, and the first time this dimension of the GWA 2006 has been analysed in such depth. The court examined earlier
The solution arrived through the United Nations Compensation Commission (UNCC), a quasi‑judicial body handling mass claims, created under UN Security Council Resolution 687. By addressing environmental harm—most notably via its ‘F4’ claim class—the UNCC set a seminal benchmark shaping how international law and contemporary arbitral panels allocate financial responsibility for wartime ecological devastation. With present-day wars in areas such as Eastern Europe and the Middle East bringing dam breaches, strikes on chemical facilities, and the burning of farmland, the UNCC’s legacy endures as an essential reference point for states, global investors, and companies engaged in post‑conflict arbitration. The F4 claims: Quantifying the unquantifiable Prior to the 1990s, mechanisms in international law for war reparations overwhelmingly favoured property loss, foregone earnings, and bodily injury. The natural world was commonly treated as a mute, non-compensable victim of armed hostilities...
Understanding the farming business as a business Many farms still use long-standing structures that arose by habit, not strategy. Sole traders, informal partnerships and outdated partnership deeds are common. While once effective, such setups can cause major issues around succession, tax planning and involving the next generation. A corporate team can take a fresh, business-led view of the farm, asking: Who owns the land and other critical assets? Who manages daily operations? Who carries the risk and who enjoys the return? What is the enduring plan for succession? From this review, the team can confirm whether the current setup is fit for purpose or if an alternative — for example an updated partnership agreement, a company, a limited liability partnership, or a blended model — would better meet the family’s aims. Tax efficiency through joined-up advice Tax sits at the centre of most
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Rebecca Hilsenrath, interim ombudsman at the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman ( PHSO), urged MPs to hold the government to account. In its report published in March 2024, the PHSO found the Department for Work and Pensions ( DWP) failed to adequately inform the public about legislative changes to the women’s state pension age, leaving many female retirees worse off financially. The ombudsman recommended the department pay compensation of between £1,000 and £2,950 to each person affected. Campaign groups say around 3.9 million women have been affected by these legislative changes to the state pension age......
Original news Dr Y ( CAS-37814- G1K9)—20 December 2023 Summary The DPO has partly turned down a complaint that a member was misled into leaving a pension scheme to avoid a lifetime allowance tax charge. It concluded there was no causal link between the scheme’s communications and the decision to opt out. The scheme had not provided advice or a recommendation. However, the scheme administrator was found to have committed maladministration due to delays in replying to the member’s complaint and by overpaying the retirement lump sum. The determination serves as a reminder that pension schemes should be cautious not to give advice or direct members towards any particular course of action. What were the facts? Dr Y was a member of the NHS Superannuation Scheme ( Scotland) (the Scheme). The Scottish Public Pensions Agency ( SPPA) administered the Scheme. In 2014 and 2016, SPPA wrote to Dr Y...
Original news Mr Y ( CAS-39869- Q8J7)—19 December 2023 Summary The Pensions Ombudsman ( PO) has partly upheld a complaint concerning the recovery of a mistaken payment. The trustee acted contrary to section 91(6) of the Pensions Act 1995 by deducting the overpayment without first obtaining a court order; for these purposes, the Pensions Ombudsman is not a competent court. There was, however, no successful estoppel or change of position defence, as the complainant ought reasonably to have realised he was not due an unreduced pension at age 60. This decision serves as a reminder that, where repayment is contested, trustees must secure a court order before reclaiming overpayments... What were the facts? Mr Y was a member of the Aecom Group Pension Scheme (the Scheme). Before that, he had belonged to the Knight Piesold UK Final Salary Scheme (the KP Scheme), and...
Summary The Pensions Ombudsman ( PO) upheld a complaint, concluding that a professional trustee shared partial liability with the SSAS’s member trustee for a concentrated, high‑risk property investment taken on behalf of the Scheme. The professional trustee’s investment obligations were not limited by the scheme documents, and proceeding without advice and without diversification, in the circumstances, amounted to a breach of pension legislation. Nonetheless, the PO decided the member trustee bore 20% contributory responsibility for the loss suffered. The determination confirms that professional trustees are held to a stricter benchmark than lay trustees in comparable situations. What were the facts? Mr N was the only member of a small self‑administered scheme (the Scheme), set up after unregulated advice, via a transfer of £90,535. He acted as a trustee with Rowanmoor Trustees Limited ( RTL), a professional trustee. Mr N signed an...
TPR stated that its refreshed corporate plan for 2024 to 2027 will press ahead with policy measures aimed at safeguarding consumers’ funds and interests as the industry evolves. This involves bringing in new rules on pension scheme funding, trailed by the government in January 2023, intended to permit greater flexibility for investing in higher‑risk assets to help stimulate UK economic growth. The regulator added it will keep building the value‑for‑money framework, while making sure that new defined benefit ( DB) consolidators, which combine smaller schemes, act to protect savers. The framework aims to move attention away from price and towards long‑term value for defined contribution ( DC) pension savings. The government also intends to reshape the Pension Protection Fund as a public sector consolidator as the sector undergoes changes in the UK over 2024 to 2027 as well......
The Pensions Management Institute ( PMI) PMI reported that 66% of the 119 specialists it polled judged pensions policy unsatisfactory over the past six months, an increase on the 61% reporting the same in 2023. The institute also noted that, in April, 76% of respondents were downbeat about the overall policy direction. Robert Wakefield, the PMI’s president, warned that a raft of overlapping and onerous proposals is stretching industry resources. He said sweeping regulatory changes have left many exasperated by the absence of a clear direction for pensions policy, and that many feel frustrated. According to Wakefield, the sheer volume of initiatives gives the impression that the government is tossing out ideas in the hope a few succeed, yet without a long-term programme shaped with industry backing......
These additional sums will come on top of the £9.4m that employees have already received to date. The precise amounts involved have not been publicly disclosed. The necessary paperwork is expected to be finalised later in the year, delivering further redress to victims of the scam. In written evidence released on 1 May 2024, the Pension Protection Fund ( PPF) confirmed it had reached agreement with Dalriada Trustees Ltd on the method for identifying which members of the pension plan should receive top-up payments......
In a statement, the Pensions Scams Industry Group reported that, since 2014, volunteer efforts have enabled it to make headway against pension fraud. However, the organisation now fears for its sustainability, as volunteer numbers have dwindled due to competing demands. The group has been instrumental in creating protections to shield pension scheme members from criminal activity. It issued its first code of good practice in 2015, and subsequent revisions have helped to cement that code as the sector’s standard for effectively tackling pension scams......
Public disclosures to compare pension schemes The government said that opening up disclosures will enable employers and workers to compare pension schemes more easily. But the Society of Pension Professionals warned the policy could also weaken pension funds’ decision-making authority. Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt outlined the disclosure programme in March 2024, alongside a push for UK pension funds to invest at least 5% of assets in unlisted British companies. In a paper dated 1 May 2024, the SPP noted that the main pension providers—covering more than 15 million UK pension savers—already publish their UK investments via Corporate Adviser magazine’s annual Master Trust & GPP report. The SPP pointed out that such disclosures are already available through that report. According to the paper, the results indicate that funds with higher UK equity weightings have typically underperformed those with minimal or no exposure to the UK...
In this issue: Abolition of the lifetime allowance The Pensions Regulator Pensions dashboards Daily and weekly news alerts Dates for your diary Trackers Abolition of the lifetime allowance HMRC publishes Pensions Schemes Newsletter 159 — April 2024 HMRC has issued Pensions Schemes Newsletter 159 for April 2024, which includes, amongst other items, extra guidance on the abolition of the lifetime allowance ( LTA). In particular, HMRC has clarified how tax should be applied to benefits where an individual had become entitled before 6 April 2024, but the benefits are paid on or after that date......
A D Bly Groundworks and Civil Engineering Ltd and another v HMRC [2024] UKUT 104 ( TCC) Each taxpayer instructed the same firm of chartered accountants to set up a UURBS arrangement that committed them to paying pensions in future to directors and certain key employees. They recorded accounting provisions in their accounts to reflect the obligation to meet those later pension payments. Amounts booked ranged from 80% to 100% of pre-tax profits for each accounting period. The UURBS was disclosed to HMRC under the DOTAS rules. The FTT had rejected the taxpayers’ challenges to HMRC’s refusal to allow the provisions. The companies then appealed thereafter to the UT. The principal point at issue only......
R (on the application of the British Medical Association) v His Majesty’s Treasury and another; R (on the application of The Fire Brigades Union and others) v His Majesty’s Treasury and another [2024] EWCA Civ 355 What are the practical implications of this case? Barring any further appeal, the Court of Appeal’s ruling places the Mc Cloud Remedy’s costs on present scheme members, in the same way as other valuation components tied to member profiles (for example life expectancy and pay growth), rather than on scheme employers. Employers, together with the Exchequer, continue to shoulder variability from financial and technical assumptions, such as the discount rate and actuarial methods. Unsurprisingly, members are unlikely to view this favourably, particularly where it can fairly be said that the government’s own failure to avoid discriminatory treatment when setting up the new public sector pension...
Original news Mr D ( CAS-32978- T3X8)—17 October 2023 Summary The PO found in favour of a complaint challenging a pension scheme’s decision not to return overpaid employer contributions. It concluded the surplus should be refunded to the member’s employer, which in this case was the complainant’s incorporated company. No proof was provided of any arrangement assigning the entitlement to a refund to a successor employer. Nor was there a sufficient link between the amount owed to the complainant’s company and a liability the successor employer owed the scheme to permit the scheme to net the two amounts off. The PO’s ruling underlines how critical it is to identify the proper parties to a complaint. Accordingly, the refund could neither be redirected nor set off against unrelated sums... What were the facts? Mr D served as the principal director and shareholder of Tower House School Torbay Ltd (...
Funded reinsurance an 'emerging risk' On 25 April 2024, Lisa Leaman, who leads insurance supervision at the central bank’s Prudential Regulation Authority ( PRA), described so-called funded reinsurance as an 'emerging risk' in a speech. The PRA’s anxiety is mounting over insurers’ reliance on funded reinsurance as they move to exploit booming demand in the bulk purchase annuity market. Under these arrangements, a UK insurer may sometimes transfer a slice of a pension scheme’s liabilities – together with the corresponding assets to back them – to a reinsurer based overseas. Industry watchdogs and regulators worry that, should the reinsurer fail, insurers could be left unable to meet or cover those liabilities because the assets have gone with the failed counterparty......
Findings from Social Market Foundation show that nearly three quarters of the 1,618 employees polled want the option for a single pension pot to accompany them each time they move job. When questioned about lifetime provider models, 73% of those aged 35 to 44 back the approach, and 69% of participants aged 45 to 54 express support as well, the study reports. In November 2023, the Department for Work and Pensions proposed changes that would allow staff to contribute to one retirement pot, rather than routinely opening a fresh scheme whenever they switch roles. That proposal differs from the prevalent pattern in which workers accumulate a more cumbersome mix of multiple pension pots as they change employers. The government has encountered opposition from private sector to these plans......
Original news Mr T ( CAS-35991- Q6G0)—6 December 2023 Summary The PO has partly upheld a complaint concerning the information supplied with a pension increase exchange offer. The employer was not liable for negligent misstatement because the material—although not fully specific and not distinguishing between increases on pre- and post- April 1988 Guaranteed Minimum Pension ( GMP)—was still accurate. By contrast, the adviser on the offer committed maladministration by wrongly indicating that all of the member’s GMP would increase. The PO’s decision underlines how vital it is to issue precise, reliable information and advice for a pension increase exchange ( PIE). What were the facts? Mr T was a member of the Electronic Data Systems 1994 Scheme (the Scheme). The Scheme’s employer introduced a PIE offer. Mr T was provided with information about the PIE offer......
Original news Mr N ( CAS-57256- T1V5)—3 November 2023 Summary The DPO dismissed a grievance concerning a delayed transfer payment. As the transfer was completed within the statutory six-month timeframe, the complaint was not upheld, and it was judged reasonable and proportionate for the scheme to undertake further due diligence to confirm the independence of the financial advice obtained by the complainant. This determination underlines that pension schemes should exercise care to avoid unduly deferring the payment of a transfer value, while still performing appropriate checks. What were the facts? Mr N was a member of the Nat West Group Pension Fund (the Scheme). He wished to transfer his Scheme benefits to the St James Place Personal Retirement Plan (the Plan)......
TPR urged that 'very careful thought' is needed regarding novel types of pension schemes proposing to deliver defined benefit pensions for individuals with defined contribution savings pots. This caution comes after the March 2024 launch of Pension Super Haven — a new plan created by The Pension Super Fund co-founders, Edi Truell and Luke Webster......
In its annual funding statement, TPR reported that most schemes have experienced significant gains in funding levels over recent years, with rising yields on long-dated government bonds propelling many saving plans into a surplus. The stronger position enables schemes to revisit their objectives and weigh whether to run-on, combine with other plans, or offload liabilities to an insurance company in return for a one-off premium, in a structure referred to as a buyout deal......
Background—new funding and investment regime The Pension Schemes Act 2021 ( PSA 2021) brought in funding and investment obligations that are to be folded into the scheme-specific funding framework under the Pensions Act 2004. Draft rules covering these duties were first laid before Parliament by the government on 26 February, and have been made as the Occupational Pension Schemes ( Funding and Investment Strategy and Amendment) Regulations 2024, SI 2024/462 (the Regulations), in force from 6 April 2024. Taken together, PSA 2021 and the Regulations require defined benefit ( DB) occupational pension arrangements to put in place a funding and investment strategy ( FIS) to secure the long-term delivery of benefits. Part 1 of a statement of strategy ( So S) must describe the FIS. Part 2 of the So S will cover additional items related to elements of the FIS and how it is to be...
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When evaluating a general damages claim, the practitioner ought initially to refer to the Judicial College Guidelines (JCG)...
This Practice Note This Practice Note reviews mechanisms used in settling litigation. A Tomlin order consists of a consent order paired with a schedule. It operates to stay proceedings on terms that have been agreed. The provisions contained in the schedule may remain confidential. This Practice Note describes the scope of confidentiality attaching to the schedule and sets out how it differs from a standard consent order. Sample wording for a Tomlin order is included, alongside links to precedents, as well as guidance on court approval. It also addresses varying, setting aside and enforcing a Tomlin order, including the considerations the court will take into account when handling applications for each. Further guidance is provided on interpreting and applying the relevant provisions of the CPR; however, some courts and divisions impose very specific requirements for both drafting and approval, and for approaching the schedule and confidentiality issues. Accordingly, you must consider the particular rules and court guide provisions in the forum where your claim is proceeding when drawing up the Tomlin order...
Date [ date ] Parties [ name of Landlord ] [ of OR incorporated in England and Wales (company registration number [ number ]) with its registered office at ] [ address ] (Landlord) [ name of Tenant ] [ of OR incorporated in England and Wales (company registration number [ number ]) with its registered office at ] [ address ] (Tenant) [ [ name of Guarantor ] [ of OR incorporated in England and Wales (company registration number [ number ]) with its registered office at ] [ address ] (Guarantor) ] [ [ name of Mortgagee ] [ of OR incorporated in England and Wales (company registration number [ number ]) with its registered office at ] [ address ] (Mortgagee) ] Definitions Within this Deed, the terms below shall be interpreted as follows: [ Annual Rent • the annual sum reserved under the Lease; ] [ Insurance Rent • the Tenant’s share of the Landlord’s costs of insuring the Property (as set out in the Lease); ] Lease • the lease of the Property dated [ date ], entered into between (1) [ the Landlord OR [ name ...
I, [ name ], of [ address ], solemnly and sincerely state that: [ Matters to be verified, set out in numbered paragraphs ] I make this solemn statement in good conscience, believing it to be true, and pursuant to the provisions of the Statutory Declarations Act 1835. DECLARED at [ details ] this [ day ] day of [ month and year ] Before me ................................................................................ [ signature of the person before whom the declaration is made ] A [ commissioner for oaths OR [ solicitor OR [ insert other qualification ] ] authorised to administer oaths ]...
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