Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have any plans to amend the NHS pensions regulations to allow new staff of wholly owned subsidiaries of NHS Foundation Trusts to join the NHS Pension Scheme.

There are no current plans to amend the NHS Pension Scheme regulations. While each case would need to be considered on its own merits, wholly owned subsidiaries could apply for Scheme membership for any new staff who are eligible. To be eligible, these new staff would have to be employed under a standard National Health Service sub-contract to the NHS standard contract held by the NHS foundation trust, and in a role that wholly or mainly (more than 50%) relates to the delivery of clinical services to patients under that contract.