Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether she has made an assessment of the adequacy of future pension arrangements of UK university staff who are transferred to subsidiary companies by their employer.

The government recognises that a number of universities are adopting subsidiary models in a variety of circumstances. Higher education providers are independent from government and as such are responsible for their own decisions about their workforce. However, in any decisions affecting staff, the government expects providers to abide by all relevant legislation, including requirements under employment law pension requirements. The government also expects providers to engage constructively with their workforce when considering any changes that may affect them.