Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many pensioners are affected by Civil Service pension arrears.

Over 5,000 retirees are not currently in receipt of their pension payments, though many have received their lump sum payments, whilst the scheme continues to pay approximately 730,000 existing pensioners on time.

To alleviate immediate hardship, employers have issued over £24.8 million in Transitional Support Loans to over 4,429 members, alongside interest-free bridging loans ranging from £5,000 to £20,000. Members will fully repay these bridging loans upon receipt of their formal pension payments.

Existing civil servants who have partially retired or a civil servant who retired from 1 January 2025, can contact their employer to access the transitional support loan. The provision of these loans will continue while delays persist.

Pension scheme members not in scope of this loan scheme but who are at risk of experiencing financial hardship due to the delayed payment of their pension, should contact Capita to highlight the financial impact of these delays. Capita will then prioritise resolution of these cases.

Exact costs are subject to an ongoing commercial reconciliation as we comprehensively evaluate the latest service data. While specific operational figures remain commercially sensitive at this stage of the recovery plan, we continue to use all available commercial levers to manage performance and hold the administrator to account.