Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government when they last reviewed contingency plans for buy-in and buy-out pension annuity products in the event of a life insurer having financial difficulties; and whether they plan to review this in the next year.
Answered by Lord Pitt-Watson - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government keeps the framework for managing insurer distress and failure under review. The Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) is responsible for the prudential regulation and supervision of insurers and has a range of powers to intervene where firms experience financial difficulties. Insurers are subject to robust prudential requirements and ongoing supervision designed to protect policyholders and promote the safety and soundness of firms.
In 2023, HM Treasury consulted on proposals for an Insurer Resolution Regime, which would provide the authorities with additional tools to manage the failure of a systemic insurer in an orderly manner. The Government is considering the implementation of these proposals and will continue to engage with stakeholders on the development of the regime.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether there is a state guarantee for life insurers' buy-in or buy-out policies.
Answered by Lord Pitt-Watson - Parliamentary Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Prudential Regulation Authority carefully supervises insurers and requires them to maintain sufficient financial resources and robust risk-management arrangements. If a UK-regulated insurer fails, eligible annuity policies, as contracts of long-term insurance, are protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme at 100% with no upper limit.
The Government is also developing proposals for an Insurer Resolution Regime, following consultation in 2023. This would provide additional powers to manage the failure of a systemic insurer in an orderly way, helping to protect policyholders and financial stability.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what data they hold on the number of years on the National Insurance records of all UK residents and citizens and what assessment they have made of the potential cost savings that would be incurred by increasing the number of qualifying years for a full state pension from 35 to 48.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department holds information on individuals' National Insurance contribution records, including qualifying years relevant to State Pension entitlement. DWP has made no assessment of the savings arising from increasing the number of qualifying years required for a full State Pension from 35 to 48.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment it has made of the savings to the Treasury over the next 10 years of (1) dropping the 2.5 per cent element of the triple lock on pensions, and (2) only uprating the equivalent of the basic state pension's value by the triple lock each year, with the remaining state pension payments uprated by prices.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
An assessment of dropping the 2.5% element of the Triple lock on pensions and only uprating the equivalent of the basic state pension's value by the triple lock each year, with the remaining state pension payments uprated by prices, would incur disproportionate cost.
The Office for Budget Responsibility assume long-term annual growth rates for the following economic determinants: Consumer Price Index (2.0%), Average Earnings (3.75%) and āTriple Lockā (4.31%).
Source: OBR Long-term economic determinants - March 2026 Economic and Fiscal Outlook
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the answer byĀ Baroness Merron on 6 July (HL Deb cols 2ā3), what integrated care board groupsĀ do not have at least one fracture liaison service.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
I refer the Noble Baroness to the answer provided on 1 September in response to Question HL2030, which, for ease of reference, is reproduced below.
Our 10-Year Health Plan is clear that the future National Health Service must be more preventative, more integrated, and deliver more care closer to home, including for people with osteoporosis.
The Plan committed to rolling out Fracture Liaison Services across every part of the country by 2030, and we are clear that everyone at risk of fragility fractures should be able to benefit from high-quality, timely care that supports prevention, early intervention, and effective management. We are pursuing those goals across the whole pathway of fracture prevention, including improving access to diagnosis, supporting the adoption of effective treatments, and encouraging local systems to develop services that identify people at the highest risk of future fractures and intervene early.
Earlier this year, the Government announced Ā£2.6 million of funding for 20 new DEXA bone density scanners across England. Tens of thousands of patients will benefit from faster access to bone scans as a result, helping to ensure that people with bone conditions, such as osteoporosis, get diagnosed earlier. This builds on the first wave of 13 DEXA scanners announced last year. In 2025, over 21,000 extra DEXA scans were delivered in England compared with 2024.
We continue to work closely with NHS England to improve access to fracture prevention services and to explore the best ways of supporting local systems to deliver high-quality care which meets the needs of their populations. The Government has been clear that integrated care boards are best placed to shape services for their localities and we have set expectations, through the Renewed Womenās Health Strategy, that they should prioritise community-based models when commissioning new services.
Progress in this area can be monitored through activity and outcomes reported through the Fracture Liaison Service Database.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by the Minister of State for Social Security and Disability on 17 March (HC119129),Ā which issues were investigated by (1) the Pensions Ombudsman, and (2) the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman, in connection with the AEA Technology pension scheme when it was transferred from the public to private sector.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Pensions Ombudsman investigated a complaint determined in January 2015 concerning the conduct of the trustee of the AEA Technology Pension Scheme (reference PO-4816 can be found on The Pension Ombudsman website).
In its role as the Pension Protection Fund (PPF) Ombudsman, The Pensions Ombudsman considered two references of reviewable matters concerning the PPF and AEA Technology. Both cases are in the public domain and can be found on The Pensions Ombudsman website. The first (reference PPFO-2915), in June 2014, and the second (reference CAS-53012-H6M5), in December 2021.
The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman investigated complaints about a factsheet produced by the Department for Work and Pensions in response to enquiries from members of the AEA Technology Pension Scheme.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what protections and rights of appeal are available to public sector pension scheme members who suffer avoidable losses due to incomplete Government Actuary department information when transferring accrued rights to the private sector.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Actuaries providing information in relation to pension transfers are bound to uphold standards and codes of conduct set out by the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries, the professional body for actuaries, and the Financial Reporting Council, the oversight body for the actuarial profession. Both organisations can investigate complaints against individual actuaries (but not organisations) and have established complaints and disciplinary processes.
Where a pension scheme trustee, sponsoring employer or member believes they have suffered a loss as a result of incomplete actuarial information, redress would normally be sought through the courts under professional negligence or breach of contract.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government which regulatory body oversees the actuarial profession in connection with advice to members, trustees and sponsors of Defined Benefit pension schemes and what mechanism there is for compensation for schemes or members who lose out as a result of negligent advice or failure to warn of all material risks to the pension scheme or its members.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The actuarial profession is regulated by the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries (IFoA) which is the relevant professional body. It is possible to raise a concern or complaint relating to an individual member of the IFoA directly to the IFoA.
The Actuariesā Code is the ethical Code of Conduct to which all IFoA members must adhere. Failure by a member to comply with the ethical requirements set out in the Code may lead to disciplinary proceedings under theāÆIFoAās Disciplinary Scheme.
The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) is the oversight body for the actuarial profession, and this provides a further route for complaints about professional standards and conduct.
Where a pension scheme trustee, sponsoring employer or member believes they have suffered a loss as a result of negligent actuarial advice, redress would normally be sought through the courts under professional negligence or breach of contract.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what risk analysis have they conducted, or asked regulators to conduct, to stress-test the payments currently expected from the Financial Services Compensation Scheme, should one or more underwriter, reinsurer or supplier of life annuities or bulk purchase annuities become insolvent and be unable to meet all the long-term liabilities from its own resources; if so, what the results of the stress test were; and if not, whether they intend to commission such an analysis.
Answered by Lord Livermore
The Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) funds its compensation costs through levies on the financial services sector and recoveries against firms that have failed. As FSCS levies industry following payment of compensation or securing continuity for policyholders, it has the ability to borrow privately from a Ā£3 billion revolving credit facility to meet short-term funding needs, with any lending repaid through levies. As a last resort, it can also request to borrow from HM Treasury, with any government borrowing also repaid through levies. This means that, even in the event of last-resort public financial support, the financial services sector will fund FSCSās costs through a levy alongside recoveries.
Under rules set by the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA), eligible life insurance policyholders ā including customers of life annuity and bulk purchase annuity contracts ā are 100% protected by the FSCS for any claims against an authorised insurer in the event that it fails. For a life insurance failure, levies would be payable by other life insurance and pensions providers.
The PRA sets the rules for policyholder protection including the FSCS funding of insurance compensation, including long-term insurance such as annuities. In doing so, it has rules in place to ensure FSCS can safely levy the insurance sector and meet its costs. The FSCS also closely monitors and regularly forecasts potential claims and compensation costs to ensure it can meet these within its available financial means. The PRA also conducts stress tests of life insurers, most recently in 2025.
Finally, FSCS also maintains contingency plans for a potential life insurance failure. These plans are subject to independent assurance through FSCS's assurance framework and are designed to support an effective and coordinated response, including engagement with regulators, firms and other stakeholders.
Asked by: Baroness Altmann (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the Financial Services Compensation Scheme would pay out 100 per cent of all life annuity or bulk purchase annuity contracts, in the event that the annuity company or its underwriters or reinsurers were to fail and become unable to do so.
Answered by Lord Livermore
The Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) funds its compensation costs through levies on the financial services sector and recoveries against firms that have failed. As FSCS levies industry following payment of compensation or securing continuity for policyholders, it has the ability to borrow privately from a Ā£3 billion revolving credit facility to meet short-term funding needs, with any lending repaid through levies. As a last resort, it can also request to borrow from HM Treasury, with any government borrowing also repaid through levies. This means that, even in the event of last-resort public financial support, the financial services sector will fund FSCSās costs through a levy alongside recoveries.
Under rules set by the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA), eligible life insurance policyholders ā including customers of life annuity and bulk purchase annuity contracts ā are 100% protected by the FSCS for any claims against an authorised insurer in the event that it fails. For a life insurance failure, levies would be payable by other life insurance and pensions providers.
The PRA sets the rules for policyholder protection including the FSCS funding of insurance compensation, including long-term insurance such as annuities. In doing so, it has rules in place to ensure FSCS can safely levy the insurance sector and meet its costs. The FSCS also closely monitors and regularly forecasts potential claims and compensation costs to ensure it can meet these within its available financial means. The PRA also conducts stress tests of life insurers, most recently in 2025.
Finally, FSCS also maintains contingency plans for a potential life insurance failure. These plans are subject to independent assurance through FSCS's assurance framework and are designed to support an effective and coordinated response, including engagement with regulators, firms and other stakeholders.