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Occupational Pensions

As the Secretary of State knows, based on a recommendation by the Government Actuary, the national insurance fund is required to retain a balance that is equivalent to one sixth of annual expenditure. That would equate to £9.5 billion in 2004. The balance actually held amounted to £29 billion. The Government Actuary reported that that balance will reach £60 billion by 2010—an average increase of between £5 billion and £6 billion a year. The funds are available to meet the ombudsman’s recommendations and it is an important point of principle that the Government should consider fulfilling in full the obligations that she set out.