UK - The civil service is tendering for a pension consultant to review the delivery of its pension arrangements.

The eight-month contract, which the scheme hopes to have in place by the end of May, will cover implementation policy, communication with scheme members and pension payments.

Karen Chapman, a spokeswoman for the scheme, said the review was "as routine as these things ever are". She emphasised that the review would cover operational - but not strategic - issues currently handled by government departments and private-sector contractors.

The current pension delivery model was set up in the early 1990s as part of a Treasury review of cost-effectiveness. "We're looking to see whether it's still efficient," said Chapman. "Basically, we need to see where we are with it."

The tender is unrelated to plans announced earlier this month to close the civil service final-salary scheme to new recruits in a bid to make it cost-neutral. Under the career average revalued earnings scheme (CARES), new recruits will retire at 65 on 2.3% pension of average salary for each year of service.

CARES will provide lower pensions than the current ‘premium' scheme for civil servants with faster-than-average salary increases.

The government has confirmed that it will cap funding of its contribution to the fund at 20%. Employer contributions currently total 19.4%.
Elsewhere it emerged that the almost £1bn (€1.5bn) Cornwall County Council pension fund has re-appointed Hymans Robertson LLP as its custodian.
Hymans won the five-year contract over three other participants, the pension fund confirmed to IPE.

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