Written question asked by John Pugh (Liberal Democrat) on Monday, 11 July 2005, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 13 July 2005. It was answered by Adam Ingram (Labour) on Thursday, 21 July 2005 on behalf of the Ministry of Defence.

Royal Ordnance

Question: (2) whether the Government's responsibilities to former Royal Ordnance Factory employees who are now members of the Royal Ordnance Crown Service Pension Scheme include (a) the benefits of a public-to-private transfer and (b) protections afforded by the Social Security Act 1995.

Answer: The Royal Ordnance Factories (ROFs) were part of the Ministry of Defence until 2 January 1985, when the property, rights and liabilities were vested in Royal Ordnance plc. At that time ROF employees were given the option of transferring their pension benefits to the Royal Ordnance (Crown Service) Pension Scheme (a scheme comparable with the Principal Civil Service Pension Scheme PCSPS) or to preserve their benefits in the PCSPS. The questions of whether the date of transfer is considered to be 1985 or 1987 or whether those transferred are covered by the 1985 Social Security Act are points of law on which independent legal advice should be sought if required.

Secondary information