Question to the Cabinet Office:

To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many civil servants are waiting for payment of a civil service pension in (a) Melksham and Devizes constituency and (b) the UK.

The Cabinet Office awarded the contract to administer the Civil Service Pension Scheme to Capita in November 2023 under the previous government.

The issues and delays facing a number of civil servants and pension scheme members in receiving their pension quotes are unacceptable. I want to reassure you that this Government has taken firm action to help put things right as soon as possible. We have agreed a clear recovery plan with Capita, which includes specific milestones and accountability targets for delivery. For priority cases, we have deployed additional resources and improved communication with affected colleagues, so that staff, both former and serving, receive the quality of service and support they deserve.

Existing Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) have been enhanced and strengthened to deliver improved performance and higher penalties for failure, including financial penalties. These have already been applied in respect to Capita's performance falling short of expected standards and delays in administering the Civil Service Pension Scheme.

Capita were instructed to prioritise and clear the most urgent cases such as Death in Service and Ill-Health during February and March. While Capita previously assured us that performance standards for Death in Service and Ill-Health were being met by mid-March, recent information continues to demonstrate unacceptable delays in some ill-health retirement and death-in-service cases. We have urgently escalated this to Capita, who are actively investigating the underlying data and reasons for these continued delays.

Capita has made lump sum payments to 14,880 members, the majority of whom have retired but are not yet receiving their pension.

There are currently approximately 24,000 members awaiting pension quotations from Capita. This includes a number of cases pre 1 December where members had requested pension quotations that had not been processed by the previous administrator. The Cabinet Office has mandated Capita that they must restore service levels by the end of June 2026.

We are unable to provide a breakdown of the number of people affected in the Melksham and Devizes constituency. Capita does not provide standard reporting on the administration of the Civil Service Pension Scheme on a geographical or constituency basis.

Regular updates on the work to recover the service, continue to be posted on the Civil Service Pensions member portal and on Gov.Uk.