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Pensions Bill

I have already spoken to Amendments Nos. 69 and 70. Amendment No. 71 in the name of the noble Lord, Lord Skelmersdale, would require the pension age in the test scheme automatically to track increases in state pension age once they are equalised for men and women. However, linking the pensionable age in the test scheme directly to changes in state pension age could lead to complexity. Over a transitional period, state pension age will increase in gradual steps, until it is 68 for both men and women. It is unlikely that the pension age of an employer’s pension scheme will exactly match the transitional arrangements for increasing state pension age and we would like to be able to take account of changes to defined benefit pension provision in adjusting the pension age of the test scheme. We believe that simply linking to state pension age could have the unintended consequence of making the qualifying test more complex. That is why we have taken a flexible power enabling us, following consultation, to make changes to the test scheme so that it reflects increases in state pension age without imposing additional burdens on employers. I hope that my explanation of why we have drafted this change in this way has reassured the noble Lord.