Pensions - Articles - Tata Steel to invest £100m: Will TPR cut pension benefits?

 “In the cat and mouse game between Tata and the UK Government over the future of British Steel, Tata has offered the carrot of significant new money to help convince the Pension Regulator (tPR) to cut the pension scheme’s benefits, and pave the way for yet another consolidation of the UK’s steel operations. Whilst this is a positive development, the key question is whether the plan to invest £100million a year into its British steelworks is enough of an incentive to take the scheme into the Pension Protection Fund (PPF). Or will maintaining benefits above those PPF levels be the non-negotiating stance adopted by tPR? If sustainable growth is a real tPR objective, then Tata’s offer will seriously test that objective. 

 “The key point over today’s announcement of the Liberty House deal is that, whilst saving 1,700 jobs, the pension liabilities may not be taken on by Liberty. I highly suspect that no-one but Tata will take the liabilities but it will be interesting to see what happens.”