Latest on Regulation & Reform – Page 388
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OECD calls for pension expansion despite $5.4trn loss
[16:55 CET 12-02] GLOBAL – Private pensions across the world lost $5.4trn between January and December 2008, up from $5trn in October 2008, driven mainly by returns on US pension funds, according to figures from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
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PPF guides trustees on entering lifeboat scheme
[16:00 CET 12-02] UK – As more pension scheme sponsors threaten to go bust, the Pension Protection Fund (PPF) has published guidance to help trustees through the UK lifeboat scheme’s assessment period.
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NewsGerman ministry warned against Solvency II
[12:00 CET 12-02] GERMANY – A German ministerial committee has reiterated pension associations’ fears by arguing the introduction of Solvency II for the insurance sector could be detrimental to the financial system.
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Harbour workers ask judge to replace Optas board
[16:45 CET 11-02] NETHERLANDS – The representative body of the Dutch harbour workers (SBPVH) has today launched a lawsuit against the board of Optas through a court in The Hague.
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NewsEC lets BT off with £17m ruling
[16:00 CET 11-02] EUROPE/UK – The European Commission (EC) has ordered British Telecom to pay £16.6m (€18.5m) for withholding the Pension Protection Fund (PPF) levy subsidy under the terms of the UK Crown guarantee.
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Iceland to allow 'temporary' access to 3rd pillar savings
[14:30 CET 11-02] ICELAND – The Icelandic government plans to introduce legislation allowing holders of individual pension accounts to access their savings early to meet “dire financial difficulties”.
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Mercer warns of 'less transparency' under new accounting
[11:00 CET 11-02] NETHERLANDS - Replacing the present accounting rules for unlisted Dutch companies, as proposed, could lead to a decrease in transparency, a partner at Mercer Consultants has suggested.
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Eumedion seeks end to short-selling bans
[16:00 CET 10-02] EUROPE - Eumedion, the Nethelands-based corporate governance forum for institutional investors, has called on European governments and supervisors to lift the remaining short-selling bans.
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AP1 updates ownership governance policy
[15:30 CET 10-02] SWEDEN - Första AP-fonden, (AP1), the first Swedish national pension fund, has updated its 'ownership policy' relating to how it uses active ownership to influence corporate governance issues in both Swedish and foreign companies.
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Complexity and costs have 'killed' DB
[15:15 CET 09-02] UK – An increase in “well-meaning” legislation has effectively ‘killed off’ defined benefit (DB) schemes through rising complexity and costs, experts have warned.
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Pearson pension transfers stall at calculation
[14:30 CET 09-02] UK – Hundreds of members of the Pearson Group Pension Trustee Limited are facing yet more delays to requested occupational pensions transfers, even though administrators are understood to have repeatedly indicated members’ transfer values would be calculated and dealt with months ago.
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Irish public sector workers plan action over levy
[16:45 CET 16:45] IRELAND – Irish public sector trade unions have warned they are “not ruling anything out” in reaction to government plans to introduce an average public service pension levy of 7.5% on €50,000 earnings.
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Gov't claims auto-enrolment will benefit 95%
[17:05 CET 05-02] UK – Auto-enrolment will benefit more than 95% of people in relation to retirement saving despite means-testing, and the “large majority” expected to get double what they contribute, the government has claimed.
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Irish managed funds drop 1.9% in January
[16:55 CET 05-02] IRELAND – Irish group pension managed funds fell an average of 1.9% in January continuing the downward trend that led to a 34.8% loss in 2008, according to figures from Rubicon Investment Consulting.
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Auditors force repricing of IAS19 discount rate
[15:30 CET 05-02] UK – Corporate executives are being put under pressure by auditors to reprice their apparent pension liabilities to more realistic levels, in light of the huge shift in recent months in corporate bond yields.
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'Flawed' IASB pensions measure to go in P&L
[15:15 CET 05-02] GLOBAL - The International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) has tentatively cleared a staff proposal that could see so-called pension plan remeasurements go straight into profit and loss on a company’s balance sheet, and possibly net of tax.
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Public sector 'to cost taxpayers £335bn'
[16:55 CET 04-02] UK – The Institute of Directors (IoD) has suggested public sector workers should be switched to defined contribution (DC) pension arrangements as public sector pensions as funding shortfalls could cost taxpayers £335bn (€371bn) in employer controbutions over the next 50 years.
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Pensions Board updates DB funding standard rules
[15:45 CET 04-02] IRELAND – The Irish Pensions Board has issued revised guidelines for pension schemes wanting to extend recovery periods for scheme funding past 10 years.
