Charities stuck in multi-employer pension schemes with large liabilities is a growing issue for the sector, David Davison met the DWP last week to discuss the issue.

A representative of the Charity Finance Group (CFG) and I met with senior officials at the DWP last week to discuss the report I prepared for CFG entitled "The case for consultation on multi-employer pension schemes".

The meeting highlighted the inconsistencies in pension legislation which effectively force charities participating in multi-employer pension schemes to continue to build liabilities beyond the level at which they are affordable, as discussed in an article previously published, and which excludes them from options open to participants in stand-alone or segregated pension schemes. The DWP ran a consultation in 2011 however it did not specifically address the issues faced by multi-employer schemes in general or charities in particular and there is undoubtedly a need for this to be addressed.

Clearly any consultation needs to be accommodated within wider government objectives and available resources however we would hope that the hugely negative impact that this is having on a vital economic sector will encourage DWP to advance this issue well up the priority order. To be continued…………