Social Welfare (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2003

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Amendment

In the definition of “contract of employment” (inserted by the Pensions (Amendment) Act 2002 ) substitute the following for paragraph (a):

“(a) a contract of service or apprenticeship, or”.

Substitute the following for the proviso to subsection (2) (as amended by the Pensions (Amendment) Act 2002 ):

“Provided that, in the case of a defined benefit scheme, if the actuary advises the trustees that he is reasonably satisfied that, if he were to prepare an actuarial funding certificate under section 42 having an effective date of the day upon which the amount of the transfer payment is expected to be made, he would not certify that the scheme satisfies the funding standard provided for in section 44, the amount of the transfer payment applied by the trustees after 2 April 2003 may be reduced by the trustees, on the advice of the actuary, having regard to the provisions of section 48.”.

(a) Substitute the following for subsection (2):

“(2) Subject to subsections (3) and (4), an actuarial funding certificate shall be submitted to the Board by the trustees of the scheme within 9 months (or such other period as may be prescribed) of the effective date of the certificate.”.

(b) Insert the following after subsection (3):

“(4) The Board, on application to it in that behalf by the trustees of a scheme, may extend the time limit provided for by subsection (2) or (3) or in regulations made under subsection (3), as the case may be, for a period not exceeding 6 months where it considers the extension is appropriate having regard to the circumstances of the application concerned.”.

(a)  In subsection (2), substitute “Subject to subsection (3), a funding proposal shall” for “A funding proposal shall”.

(b)  Substitute the following for subsection (3):

“(3) The Board, on application to it in that behalf by the trustees of a scheme, may, in relation to the scheme, in the circumstances and on the terms that it considers appropriate—

(a)  for the purposes of subsection (2)(a), specify a date later than the effective date of the next actuarial funding certificate where—

(i)  the actuary concerned certifies that the failure of the scheme to satisfy the funding standard relates wholly or mainly to the performance of relevant markets in relation to investments made with the resources of the scheme and that the performance of those markets in relation to those investments is not inconsistent with the performance generally of relevant markets for investment in the same period, and

(ii)  having regard to the performance generally of relevant markets for investment, the Board considers that specifying a later date is necessary or appropriate and not contrary to the interests of the members of the scheme,

and

(b)  modify the requirements of paragraphs (b), (c)  or (d)  of subsection (2) where—

(i)  administrative difficulties have arisen from circumstances outside the control of the trustees of the scheme or schemes,

(ii)  the modification does not materially alter those subsections, and

(iii)  the Board considers the modification necessary or appropriate and that it is not contrary to the interests of the members of that scheme.”.

(a)  Substitute the following for subsection (4):

“(4) Notwithstanding subsection (3), an employer may disregard for the purposes of the statement referred to in that subsection any amount deducted from the wages or salary of an employee, and any amount paid on behalf or in respect of an employee, that is not to be applied as a contribution to secure long service benefit.

(5) The requirements of subsection (3) relating to an employee shall be regarded as having been satisfied if particulars of the amount remitted under subparagraph (i) of that subsection or the amount paid under subparagraph (ii) of that subsection are included in the statement given to the employee concerned under section 4 of the Payment of Wages Act 1991 .

(6) In subsections (1) and (2) ‘month’ means—

(a)  a calendar month, or

(b)  a period of 28 days beginning on a day to be determined by the trustees of the scheme concerned, and each consecutive period of 28 days thereafter (or such shorter period as the trustees of the scheme may determine) each such consecutive period beginning on the day after the last day of the period immediately preceding such period.”.

(a)  Delete the definition of “equality officer” (inserted by the Social Welfare Act 1993 ).

(b)  Insert the following definition after the definition of “the Court”:

“‘the Director’ means the Director of Equality Investigations appointed under section 75(1) of the Employment Equality Act 1998 ;”.

(a)  Substitute the following marginal note for the marginal note to that section:

“Director of Equality Investigations.”.

(b)  Substitute “the Director” for “an equality officer” in each place where those words occur.

(c)  In subsection (5)(b), substitute “the Director” for “the equality officer”.

In subsection (3)(d), substitute “the Director's” for “the equality officer's”.

Substitute the following for subsection (2B) (inserted by the Pensions (Amendment) Act 2002 ):

“(2B) Where a relevant person referred to in section 82(j)  has reason to believe that a PRSA provider has not operated a custodian account in accordance with the requirements of Part X that person shall, as soon as practicable, report the matter in writing to the Board.”.

In subsection (3), substitute “paragraph (b)  and paragraph (e)  of the said subsection (1)” for “that paragraph (e)”.

Insert the following after subsection (5):

“(6) The Minister may make regulations providing that some or all of the following information shall be provided by a PRSA provider or intermediary to the person referred to in subsection (1) and contributors before the conclusion of the PRSA contract concerned:

(a)  whether the PRSA contract replaces, in whole or in part, an existing PRSA contract or retirement annuity contract with the PRSA provider concerned or any other PRSA provider or insurer which has been or is to be cancelled or in respect of which any benefit or cover has been or is to be reduced;

(b)  where an existing PRSA contract or retirement annuity contract has been or is to be cancelled or any benefit or cover has been or is to be reduced, the financial consequences, if any, for the contributor.

(7) In this section, ‘insurer’ has the meaning assigned to it by section 2 of the Insurance Act 1989 .

(8) The Minister may make regulations providing that some or all of the information contained in a preliminary disclosure certificate or required to be disclosed in accordance with subsection (6) shall be prepared in accordance with—

(a)  the advice of the PRSA actuary, and

(b)  any guidance notes issued by the Society of Actuaries in Ireland for that purpose.”.

(a)  Insert the following after subsection (4):

“(5) Without prejudice to the generality of subsection (4), regulations under that subsection may prescribe—

(a)  that some or all of the information contained in a certificate referred to in subsection (1)(a)  and the statement referred to in subsection (1)(b)  shall be prepared in accordance with—

(i)  the advice of the PRSA actuary, and

(ii)  any guidance notes issued by the Society of Actuaries in Ireland for that purpose,

and

(b)  that some or all of the information contained in the statement of the benefits to be furnished by trustees under subsection (2) shall be prepared in accordance with—

(i)  the advice of the scheme actuary, in the case of a defined benefit scheme, and

(ii)  any guidance notes issued by the Society of Actuaries in Ireland for that purpose.”.

(b)  In subsection (2), substitute “paragraph (a)  of subsection (1)” for “subsection (1)(a)”.

Insert the following after subsection (4):

“(5) The Minister may by regulations prescribe that some or all of the information contained in a Statement of Reasonable Projection shall be prepared in accordance with—

(a)  the advice of the PRSA actuary, and

(b)  any guidance notes issued by the Society of Actuaries in Ireland for that purpose.”.

Substitute the following for subsection (3):

“(3) Regulations may prescribe that in—

(a)  making a determination under this section,

(b)  preparing a certificate under this section, or

(c)  signing a certificate required under section 94(1)(b),

a PRSA actuary shall comply with any applicable professional guidance issued by the Society of Actuaries in Ireland for this purpose and specified in the regulations or with any applicable guidance issued by any other person (including the Minister) and specified in those regulations.

(4) For the purpose of enabling a PRSA actuary to make a determination under subsection (1), regulations may prescribe the form and manner and content of a declaration to be furnished by the PRSA provider that all information requested by the PRSA actuary pursuant to his or her functions under this Part and regulations made under this Part has been provided to the PRSA actuary and is accurate.”.

Substitute the following for subsection (6):

“(6) The requirements of subsection (5) relating to an employee shall be regarded as having been satisfied if particulars of the amount remitted under subparagraph (i) of that subsection or the amount paid under subparagraph (ii) of that subsection are included in the statement given to the employee concerned under section 4 of the Payment of Wages Act 1991 .

(6A) In subsections (3) and (4) ‘month’ means—

(a)  a calendar month, or

(b)  a period of 28 days beginning on a day to be determined by the trustees of the scheme concerned, and each consecutive period of 28 days thereafter (or such shorter period as the trustees of the scheme concerned may determine) each such consecutive period beginning on the day after the last day of the period immediately preceding such period.”.

Substitute the following paragraph for paragraph 4(c):

“(c)  an amount calculated in accordance with the formula—

A×B₂

_

C

where

A has the value ascribed to it in paragraph 2(1) but calculated on the basis described in paragraph 2(2)(a)  if the basis of calculating long service benefit has altered between 1 January 1991 or, if later, the date of commencement of the member's relevant employment and the date of termination of the member's relevant employment,

B₂ is the period of reckonable service completed up to 1 January 1991, and

C has the value ascribed to it in paragraph 2(1).”.

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