UK Inquiry Tracker

AEA Technology Pension Case

Public Accounts Committee Closed Inquiry

Opened: 20 Jan 2023 Closed: 24 Sep 2023 Parliament page

Following its work on the British Steel Pension Scheme , the Committee will question Government Actuary Martin Clarke and Karl Banister, Director of Operations, Legal and Clinical, from the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman on the Atomic Energy Agency Technology pension case. This inquiry is based on an ongoing NAO … Read more

3 Recommendations

17 Conclusions

2 Reports

1 Oral session

3 Letters

1 Event

Activity timeline 8 events

23 Nov
2023

Report published

Correspondence from Peter Schofield CB, Permanent Secretary, Department for Work and Pensions, re Treasury Minute response – AES Technology…

24 Sep
2023

Report published

Treasury minutes: Government response to the Committee of Public Accounts on the Fifty-seventh report from Session 2022-23

11 Jul
2023

Correspondence

Correspondence from William Wragg MP, Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee, re Public Accounts Committee – Report on …

14 Jun
2023

Report published

Fifty-Seventh Report - AEA Technology Pension Case

17 Apr
2023

Correspondence

Correspondence from Tom Josephs, Director, Private Pensions and Arm’s Length Bodies Department for Work and Pensions, re DWP follow up to t…

17 Apr
2023

Correspondence

Correspondence from Martin Clarke, Government Actuary, Government Actuary’s Department, re Public Accounts Committee Hearing 13th March 202…

13 Mar
2023

Oral evidence

AEA Technology pension case

13 Mar
2023

Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · The Grimond Room, Portcullis House

AEA Technology pension case

Oral evidence sessions 1 session

13 Mar 2023

View on parliament.uk

AEA Technology pension case

Karl Banister · Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman Martin Clarke · Government Actuary’s Department (GAD) Tom Josephs · Department for Work and Pensions

Reports 2 reports · click to expand

Title	HC No.	Published	Items	Response
Correspondence from Peter Schofield CB, Permanent Secretary, Dep…		23 Nov 2023	0
Fifty-Seventh Report - AEA Technology Pension Case	HC 1005	14 Jun 2023	20	Responded

Recommendations & Conclusions

5 results

4 Recommendation Accepted

Fifty-Seventh Report - AEA Technol…

Write to set out support for informed pension financial decisions within three months.

This is another case of government not giving people enough time or support to make complex financial decisions. The government has a role to help people make good financial decisions, because of the detriment that bad choices can lead to. … Read more

Government Response

The government agrees to write to the Committee detailing actions to support informed financial decisions regarding pensions. It cites specific initiatives already in place, such as the Stronger Nudge to Pensions Guidance and the national rollout of the mid-life MOT, and recent regulations made on 19 July 2023 for Pensions Dashboards.

HM Treasury

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17 Conclusion Accepted

Fifty-Seventh Report - AEA Technol…

Government provided insufficient and misleading information with restrictive one-month deadline for AEAT pension decisions.

The AEAT case is one where government directly provided information intended to help pension scheme members decide what to do with their accrued pension benefits. Members were only given one month to make the decision, and consider that the information … Read more

Government Response

The government agrees with the recommendation and will inform the Committee of actions taken to support informed pension decisions. They cite recent steps like the Stronger Nudge to Pensions Guidance, national mid-life MOT delivery, and new regulations for Pensions Dashboards.

HM Treasury

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18 Conclusion Accepted

Fifty-Seventh Report - AEA Technol…

Government and regulators consistently fail to adequately support individuals making complex financial decisions.

This committee has previously found similar issues with how government provides or oversees support for people making complex or long-term financial decisions, including through the regulation of independent financial advice. Most recently, our inquiry last year into the British Steel … Read more

Government Response

HM Treasury

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19 Conclusion Accepted

Fifty-Seventh Report - AEA Technol…

Consumers and students lack adequate support to understand complex financial products and education choices.

This committee’s 2016 report on financial services mis-selling similarly concluded that the Financial Conduct Authority was not doing enough to ensure that consumers understand the financial products they are buying. The report found that even the most knowledgeable consumers can … Read more

Government Response

HM Treasury

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20 Conclusion Accepted

Fifty-Seventh Report - AEA Technol…

DWP initiatives for improving pension financial advice lack clear timelines for tangible improvements.

We asked DWP how government can ensure it gives clearer and more accessible financial advice in similar situations in future. DWP told us that changes to policy on privatisations and transfers of pensions meant that the specific circumstances affecting 33 … Read more We asked DWP how government can ensure it gives clearer and more accessible financial advice in similar situations in future. DWP told us that changes to policy on privatisations and transfers of pensions meant that the specific circumstances affecting 33 Qq 50–51; C&AG’s Report, paras 3.10–3.11 34 Qq 44, 51 35 Q 74 36 Q 66; C&AG’s Report: para 1.7 37 Q 55 38 Committee of Public Accounts, Investigation into the British Steel Pension Scheme, Fourteenth Report of Session 2022–23, HC 251, July 2022, paras 2, 5 39 Q 54; Committee of Public Accounts, Financial services mis-selling: regulation and redress, Forty-first Report of Session 2015–16, HC 847, May 2016, para 4 40 Committee of Public Accounts, The higher education market, Forty-fifth Report of Session 2017–19, HC 693, June 2018, para 2 AEA Technology Pension Case 13 AEAT pensioners would be unlikely to happen again. More generally, it told us it has worked with the Financial Conduct Authority and the Pensions Regulator to strengthen the protections around financial advice on pensions. DWP said that encouraging engagement with pensions is difficult, and government has been considering how best to nudge people to seek financial guidance or advice, such as through the introduction of a pensions dashboard. DWP wrote to us after our evidence session to explain the ways it is trying to support people to engage with their pensions. This includes new regulations that came into force in 2022 to ensure nobody can transfer their savings through pension freedoms without either receiving Pension Wise guidance or opting out of it. It also includes initiatives under development such as Pensions Dashboards and DWP’s recent call for evidence on the support and information people need when accessing their pensions. However, DWP did not indicate when these initiatives might come to fruition and lead to tangible improvements.41 41 DWP letter to Committee dated 4 April 2023 14 AEA Technology Pension Case Show less

Government Response

The government agrees, committing to write to the Committee by September 2023 to outline actions for supporting informed pension decisions through advice, guidance, and reduced complexity, alongside ongoing initiatives like the Stronger Nudge and Pensions Dashboards.

HM Treasury

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Government Response AI assessment · 17 of 3 classified

Accepted 5

Deferred 5

Rejected 7

Total 3 recs + 17 conclusions

Correspondence 3 letters

11 Jul 2023 Correspondence from William Wragg MP, Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee, re Public Accounts Committee – Report on the AEA Technology Pension Case, dated 4 July 2023

Parliament page

17 Apr 2023 Correspondence from Tom Josephs, Director, Private Pensions and Arm’s Length Bodies Department for Work and Pensions, re DWP follow up to the Public Accounts Committee Hearing on Atomic Energy Authority Technology pension scheme 13 March 2023, dated 4 April 2023

Parliament page

17 Apr 2023 Correspondence from Martin Clarke, Government Actuary, Government Actuary’s Department, re Public Accounts Committee Hearing 13th March 2023 – AEAT Pension Scheme, dated 27 March 2023

Parliament page