Civil Service Pensions

Debate between Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent and Lord Birt

Monday 13th July 2026 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent (Lab)]

I would never disagree with my noble friend—she scares me on a good day—because she is a fabulous trade union official who has fought her members’ corner for a long time. She is absolutely right. When I have been at the Dispatch Box discussing these issues, I have been asked many times about how we got here, what is happening next and what is going to happen to Capita. Those are all valid questions that need to be answered, but the priority must be to get the money out the door, especially to those who have faced bereavement and ill health retirement. It is the very least we owe them.

[Lord Birt (CB)]

My Lords, this is plainly an extremely unhappy matter, above all for the civil servants affected, and I do not claim to be an expert on it. Is the fault all Capita’s? Was there not a very troubling two-year handover from the previous administrator and does the Cabinet Office not have to bear some responsibility for managing this transition? Does the Minister accept that, when this is over, there needs to be an independent eye to look at this and to learn the lessons?

[Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent (Lab)]

The noble Lord is right. The contract was signed and we received assurances. In response to the NAO report, we met Capita and went through a clear plan. There was a much larger backlog than was anticipated that came over from MyCSP, and the technological failures at that point meant that what we thought was going to happen has not happened, and the promises that were made since then have not been kept. However, the noble Lord raises an important point. That is why the Cabinet Office is now conducting an evidence-led review into how this failure arose, to make sure that all future contracts learn these lessons.