The Pension Schemes Bill 2019-2021 has now received royal assent

The long-awaited Pension Schemes Bill 2019-2021 has now received royal assent.

The Pension Schemes Bill 2019-2021 (the Bill) will now be known as the Pension Schemes Act 2021. The Bill was originally expected to receive royal asset in 2020 but was delayed due to the ongoing pandemic.

As discussed in our previous post, further regulations will be needed before many aspects of the Bill can come into force. It is expected that the Pensions Regulator will not be able to use its new powers until Autumn 2021. Other parts of the Bill, such as regulations for the funding of defined benefit schemes, are not expected to be in place until 2022.

The Bill legislates for, amongst other things, the introduction of pension dashboards, a new type of pension scheme known as Collective Defined Contribution Schemes and new powers for the Pensions Regulator. For further information on the new Pension Regulator’s powers and the potential impact for employers, see our previous article.

Guy Opperman, the pensions minister, has suggested that another pensions bill could be introduced during the current parliament to address the regulation of defined benefit superfunds.

Although the Bill has now received royal assent, it will still be some time before we see its effects.