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Pensions Bill

moved Amendment No. 43: 43: Clause 14, page 16, leave out lines 30 and 31 The noble Baroness said: Amendment No. 43 seeks to delete subsection (2) of the new Section 24E inserted by Clause 14. Again, this is on a probing basis. One of the procedural requirements for conversion of graduated minimum pensions is the consent, in advance, by the employer. The Law Society of Scotland has pointed out that since actuarial equivalence is required by new Section 24C it ought to be immaterial to the employer whether or not conversion takes place and without the requirement for consent it would be left to the trustees to determine. If this is not a sufficient argument for the Minister, I invite him to consider the case of schemes in wind up with deferred pensioners. If the employer no longer exists, how can consent be obtained? Does this rule out the trustees of such a scheme carrying out a conversion? I am aware that subsection (4) of new Section 24G allows the trustees of a scheme in wind up to adjust rights as if the scheme had been converted, but I am unclear whether this means that the trustees in a wind up can then ignore all of the procedural requirements in new Section 24E, which includes consent. I trust that the Minister can shed some light on this. I beg to move.