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Pensions: Civil Service

My honourable friend the Parliamentary Secretary at the Cabinet Office (Gillian Merron) has made the following Written Ministerial Statement. In my Written Ministerial Statement of 26 July 2007, I referred to the actuarial review of employer contributions payable under the Principal Civil Service Pension Scheme (PCSPS). Hewitt, the PCSPS Scheme Actuary, has now completed its review. The review concerns the level of contributions payable by employers who participate in the PCSPS. The review does not cover member contributions which are specified in the PCSPS rules. The review recommends that employer contribution rates should fall from an estimated average of 19.4 per cent of employers' pay bills to an average of 18.9 per cent. This reduction will come into effect from April 2009. Copies of Hewitt's report Review of the Accruing Superannuation Liability Charges (ASLCs) as at 31 March 2007 together with a supporting report entitled Analysis of Scheme Experience between 1 April 2003 and 31 March 2007 have been placed in the Library.