PART X

Amendments to Pensions Act

53. —Section 2 of the Pensions Act is hereby amended—

(a) by the substitution for the definition of “member” of the following definition:

“‘member’, in relation to a scheme, means, subject to section 62, any person who, having been admitted to membership under the rules of the scheme, remains entitled to any benefit under the scheme in respect of a period of service whilst employed within the State;”,

(b) by the substitution for the definition of “occupational pension scheme” of the following definition:

“‘occupational pension scheme’ means any scheme or arrangement—

(a) which is comprised in one or more instruments or agreements, and

(b) which provides or is capable of providing in relation to employees in any description of employment within the State, benefits, and

(c) (i) which has been approved of by the Revenue Commissioners for the purpose of Chapter II of Part I of the Finance Act, 1972 , or

(ii) the application for approval of which under Chapter II of Part I of the Finance Act, 1972 , is being considered, or

(iii) which is a statutory scheme to which section 17 of the Finance Act, 1972 , applies, or

(iv) which is a scheme other than a scheme specified in subparagraph (i), (ii) or (iii) and where the benefits are paid in whole or in part out of moneys provided from the Central Fund or moneys provided by the Oireachtas;”, and

(c) the substitution for the definition of “reckonable service” of the following definition:

“‘reckonable service’ means the aggregate of every period of service in the relevant employment during membership of—

(a) the scheme,

(b) every other scheme relating to the same employment where accrued rights from such other scheme have been transferred to the scheme,

but does not include service as a member of a scheme where either—

(i) the only benefit thereunder is in respect of death prior to normal pensionable age, or

(ii) the member has been notified in writing by the trustees that such service does not entitle him to long service benefit:

Provided that no such period, or part thereof, shall be counted more than once;”.

54. —(1) Section 29 (7) of the Pensions Act is hereby amended by the insertion after “another scheme,” of the following:

“where such accrued rights result from the termination of the employment to which that scheme applies,”.

(2) Section 30 (6) of the Pensions Act is hereby amended by the insertion after “another scheme,” of the following:

“where such accrued rights result from the termination of the employment to which that scheme applies,”.

(3) Section 37 (3) of the Pensions Act is hereby amended by the insertion after paragraph (b) of the following paragraph:

“(c) a member's service in relevant employment may be treated as terminated or not terminated.”.

(4) Section 38 (2) of the Pensions Act is hereby amended by the insertion in paragraph (b) after “Part,” of the following:

“or

(c) whether a member's service in relevant employment may be treated as terminated for the purposes of this Part.”.

55. —Section 34 (2) of the Pensions Act is hereby amended by the substitution for paragraph (b) of the following paragraph:

“(b) in the case of a defined contribution scheme, to the accumulated value of the appropriate contributions under the scheme in respect of the member, such value to be determined on a date not later than 3 months following the date of the receipt of the application:

Provided that where benefits under such a scheme are secured under one or more policies of assurance, the accumulated value of the appropriate contributions shall be the proportion of the proceeds of every such policy applicable to those contributions.”.

56. —Section 46 of the Pensions Act is hereby amended by the substitution for subsection (1) of the following subsection:

“(1) In completing an actuarial funding certificate, the actuary—

(a) in addition to complying with the other provisions of this Part, shall have regard to such financial or other assumptions as he considers to be appropriate on the effective date of the certificate, and

(b) notwithstanding anything contained in the rules of a relevant scheme, may assume that the liabilities of the scheme on winding up could have been provided by applying all or part of the resources of the scheme in the making of—

(i) a payment to another scheme, or

(ii) one or more payments falling to be made under policies or contracts of assurance that are effected on behalf of the member with one or more undertakings (within the meaning of the Insurance Act, 1989 ) and that are approved of by the Revenue Commissioners under Chapter II of Part I of the Finance Act, 1972 ,

such payment or payments to be equal to the actuarial value of the benefits specified in subparagraphs (i), (ii) and (iii) of section 44 (a), and the percentage of the benefits specified in section 44 (a) (iv).”.

57. —The Pensions Act is hereby amended by the substitution for section 48 of the following section:

“Priorities on winding up of relevant scheme.

48.—Notwithstanding anything contained in the rules of a relevant scheme that is being wound up—

(a) the resources of the scheme being wound up shall be applied on the winding up to secure—

(i) firstly, the continued payment of the benefits specified in paragraph 1 of the Third Schedule to or in respect of those persons who, at the date of the winding up, were in receipt of such benefits, and

(ii) secondly, the benefits specified in paragraphs 2 and 3 of the Third Schedule to or in respect of those members of the scheme who, at the date of the winding up, were within the categories referred to in those paragraphs,

before discharging any other liabilities of the scheme:

Provided that the expenses, fees and costs relating to and associated with the winding up of the scheme shall be payable in priority to any other claims on the scheme, and

(b) the trustees may apply, without the consent of the member concerned, all or part of the resources of the scheme—

(i) in the making of a payment to another scheme, or

(ii) in the making of one or more payments falling to be made under policies or contracts of assurance that are effected on behalf of the member with one or more undertakings (within the meaning of the Insurance Act, 1989 ) and that are approved by the Revenue Commissioners under Chapter II of Part I of the Finance Act, 1972 ,

such payment or payments to be equal to the actuarial value of the benefits payable under the rules of the scheme on the winding up, subject always to paragraph (a).”.

58. —Section 55 of the Pensions Act (as amended by section 62 of the Act of 1991) is hereby amended by the insertion after subsection (1) of the following proviso:

“Provided that where the period selected by the trustees is altered, a report prepared for a period other than a year, such period not to exceed 23 months, shall, with the approval of the Board, be regarded as an annual report for the purposes of this section.”.

59. —Section 56 of the Pensions Act (as amended by section 63 of the Act of 1991) is hereby amended by the insertion after subsection (4) of the following subsection:

“(4A) For the purposes of subsection (4) a firm appointed by its firm name to be the auditor of a scheme shall be deemed to be an appointment of a person who shall from time to time during the currency of the appointment be a partner in that firm as from time to time constituted and who is qualified to be an auditor of that scheme.”.

60. —Section 62 of the Pensions Act is hereby amended by the substitution for subsection (2) of the following subsection:

“(2) Regulations under this section—

(a) shall determine the circumstances in which a person, or category of persons, who, having been admitted to membership of the scheme and remaining entitled to any benefit under the scheme, is or are to be regarded for the purposes of this section as being a member or members of the scheme,

(b) may specify the manner in which decisions of members of schemes, and the selection of persons for appointment as trustees of schemes by the members of schemes, for the purpose of subsection (1) shall be made,

(c) may make such other provision as the Minister considers necessary or expedient for the purpose of this section and for enabling it to have full effect.”.

61. —The following provisions of section 69 of the Pensions Act are hereby repealed—

(a) paragraph (d) of subsection (1), and

(b) subsection (3).

62. —Section 71 of the Pensions Act is hereby amended by the 30 substitution for subsection (3) of the following subsection:

“(3) Where, on commencement of this Part, any rule of a scheme is rendered null and void by subsection (1), then, during such period as may be prescribed, beginning on such commencement and not being longer than 6 years (or in the case of retirement ages, a period not being longer than 25 years) nothing in this Part shall preclude rights or obligations, relating to a period of membership in that scheme prior to the 17th day of May, 1990, from remaining subject to the provisions of the scheme in force during that period of membership.”.

63. —The Third Schedule to the Pensions Act is hereby amended by—

(a) the substitution for paragraph 1 of the following paragraph:

“1. The benefits for the purposes of this paragraph shall be all future benefits payable under the rules of the schemeto or in respect of a person in receipt of such benefits as at the effective date of the certificate, but excluding all future increases in such benefits which are not of a contractual nature.”,

(b) the substitution for subparagraph (b) of paragraph 3 of the following paragraph:

“(b) in the case of a member of that scheme then in relevant employment, the greater of—

(i) preserved benefits (including future revaluations thereof and those benefits payable on the death of the member entitled to preserved benefit) calculated in accordance with the provisions of Part III, and

(ii) the long service benefits payable under the rules of the scheme in respect of reckonable service completed after the commencement of Part IV but prior to the effective date of the certificate,

calculated as if the member's service in relevant employment has terminated on the effective date of the certificate but disregarding any provision requiring the completion of a minimum period of qualifying service which may prevent the member concerned from acquiring an entitlement to benefit on termination of such employment.”, and

(c) the substitution in clause (i) (II) of paragraph 4 (b) (as amended by section 64 of the Act of 1991) for “the benefits” of “the long service benefits”.