Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what estimate his Department has made of the cost of paying pensions to police widows and widowers for life in the event of their re-marriage or co-habitation.

The Home Office has estimated with the Government Actuary’s Department that the cost of retaining benefits for all police survivors would increase the police scheme liabilities by around £144m. It is estimated that retaining benefits for all police survivors, including reinstatement of pensions already surrendered, would increase the police scheme liabilities by around £198m.

The Home Office does not hold information on the number of survivors’ pensions surrendered on remarriage or cohabitation, as police pensions are administered at police force level by the relevant Police Pension Authority.