The PCS says thousands of retired and soon-to-retire civil servants have experienced delays and errors in their pension payments
The government must follow the decision to terminate Capita’s contract with the Royal Mail Statutory Pension Scheme (RMSPS) by taking the same action on civil service pensions, the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union says.
The union's call follows a ministerial statement by paymaster general and Cabinet Office minister Nick Thomas-Symonds announcing the decision yesterday (22 April).
Thomas-Symonds said termination of Capita's contract with the RMSPS followed Capita's failures to meet key transition milestones and serious concerns about delivery – issues PCS says are also evident in Capita's handling of civil service pensions.
The PCS said it has been raising concerns about ongoing failures in Civil Service Pension Scheme (CSPS) administration "for months" – noting that thousands of retired and soon-to-retire civil servants have experienced delays and errors in their pension payments, leaving many in financial distress.
It called on the government to "act decisively" by ending Capita's involvement in civil service pensions and bringing the service back in-house to ensure accountability and proper service for members.
PCS general secretary Fran Heathcote said: "The decision to terminate Capita's role in the Royal Mail pension scheme sends a clear message which is this can be done. When a contractor fails, contracts can and should be ended. The same must apply to the civil service pension scheme.
"We have consistently raised the alarm as civil servants and pensioners have been left in distress, facing delays and errors to the payments they rely on.
"It is simply unacceptable that this is allowed to continue when a clear alternative exists in bringing civil service pensions back in-house. The government must now act with urgency, end Capita's contract, and prevent further failure."
Capita took over administration of the CSPS from MyCSP on 1 December last year. The administrator said it had inherited a backlog of 86,000 cases from the previous administrator – a significant proportion of which were already overdue – and this had led to higher-than-expected volumes of calls and complex queries which created further issues.
In January, the Cabinet Office asked HM Revenue & Customs deputy chief executive Angela MacDonald to lead oversight of an urgent recovery plan – a plan that included the prioritisation of urgent cases; a surge team of over 150 staff; and hardship support for affected members.
