L-R: Tiffany Tsang, Helen Miles, Nicola Morgan
A panel of trustees identified possible cost and resource challenges, especially impacting smaller pension providers, when speaking of the concerns facing trustees when it comes to imposing The Pensions Regulator’s (TPR) upcoming single code of practice.
Likely to be introduced this autumn, the new code updates ten of the regulator's 15 existing codes of practice, and also incorporates changes introduced by the broader Occupational Pension Schemes Regulations 2018.
Applying to both defined benefit (DB) and defined contribution schemes, the new code looks for consistency of standards and smooth processes, though it has sparked debate as to whether it in fact increases bureaucracy and time spent on ensuring compliance.
TPR has emphasised that an updated platform will allow users easier online access, and will look to ensure pensions schemes have their own high-quality operations of key systems, data and processes.
Speaking yesterday (17 May) at Professional Pensions Live, Marks and Spencer head of pensions and benefits Nicola Morgan said: "It's helpful bringing all of the codes together and making things look much more modern and web based and much more user friendly. I think he's a great piece of work in that respect."
Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association head of DB, Local Government Pension Schemes and investment Tiffany Tsang shows a survey from the trade body which found 72% of the industry are supportive of what the TPR was trying to achieve with the single code.
However, Morgan expressed concerns that the updates to effective systems of governance (ESOG), own risk assessments (ORAs) and a new remuneration policy could become an easy thing for the larger schemes to adapt to, but for the smaller schemes, it could be challenging in managing capacity and resourcing.
Dalriada Trustees professional trustee Paul Tinslay observed that gap analysis can be important for trustees to assess the impact of the single code, but that prices vary wildly and can cost anything from £5000 to £40,000.
For the proposed single code of practice, TPR received 17,400 answers from 103 respondents to its consultation and is currently conducting a full review.
Gunnercooke pensions partner and NHS Pensions Board chair Helen Miles said preparing for the single code had been a busy time for the HNS.
She said: "We have found that as we have looked to get our compliance side of things into our operations, it has allowed us to do more time with deep dives on particular in the risk areas, and also to develop our more strategic areas of thought and conversation."
Christopher Marchant is a financial journalist at Rhotic Media
