PRIMARY PROVISIONS

CHAPTER I

MEMBERSHIP

Eligibility for active membership

4.-(1) A person may only be an active member if this regulation, regulation 5 or Chapter I of Part V enables him to be one and he is not prevented by regulation 6.

(2) A person may be a member if he is employed by a Scheme employer.

(3) A Scheme employer is a body which is listed in Schedule 2 or is a resolution body.

(4) But a person who is employed by a resolution body may only be a member if he is covered by a relevant resolution.

(5) A relevant resolution is a statutory resolution by a resolution body stating that a specified employee or a class of employees to which he belongs may be a member.

(6) These are resolution bodies-

(a) the Board of Governors of the Museum of London;

(b) any other body which is a precepting authority, a levying body or a section 75 body;

(c) a passenger transport executive;

(d) a designated institution which immediately before designation was assisted or maintained by a local education authority;

(e) the governing body of a grant-maintained school or a grant-maintained special school (other than a school within Schedule 2);(SI1999/1212)

(f) a company under the control of a body listed in that Schedule.

(g) the Service Authority for the National Crime Intelligence Service (SI1998/1238);

(h) the Service Authority for the National Crime Squad. (SI1998/1238)

Substituted (SI1999/3438)

5.-(1) An administering authority may make an admission agreement with any admission body.

(2) An admission agreement is an agreement that all or any specified class of the admission body's employees may be members.

(3) An admission agreement may provide that a period of employment by the admission body before the date of the agreement counts as membership of the Scheme (or does so for some purposes).

(4) An admission agreement must terminate if the admission body ceases to be such a body.

(5) An admission agreement may make such other provision about its termination as the parties consider appropriate.

(6) When an administering authority make an admission agreement, they must immediately inform the Secretary of State of the admission body's name and the date the agreement takes effect.

(6A) An administering authority must notify the Commissioners of Inland Revenue of the admission of an admission body within the time prescribed in regulations made under section 605 of the Taxes Act and provide such information as may be so prescribed.(SI1999/1212)

(7) An administering authority and an admission body may make an admission agreement despite the fact that they do not exercise their functions in areas which overlap or adjoin each other.

(8) These are admission bodies-

(a) a body which provides a public service in the United Kingdom otherwise than for the purposes of gain;

(b) a body to the funds of which any local authority contribute;

(c) a body to which any grant is made out of money provided by Parliament;

(d) a body representative-

(i) of local authorities, or

(ii) of local authorities and officers of local authorities, or

(iii) of officers of local authorities,

(e) the Housing Corporation;

(f) Housing for Wales;

(g) the Commission for the New Towns.

(h) a company for the time being subject to the influence of a local authority as described in section 69 of the Local Government and Housing Act 1989. (SI1999/1212)

(9) But the governors or managers of a voluntary school do not count as a body within paragraph (8)(a) to (c) and a body only falls within paragraph (8)(d)(iii) if it is formed for the purpose of consultation as to the common interests of local authorities and the discussion of matters relating to local government.

(10) These Regulations apply to employment with an admission body in which the employee is an active member in the same way as if the body were a Scheme employer.

5.  -     (1) An administering authority may make an admission agreement with any admission body.

            (2) An admission agreement is an agreement that all or any specified class of the admission body's employees may be members.

            (3) These are admission bodies-

(a) a body which provides a public service in the United Kingdom otherwise than for the purposes of gain and which either-

(i) has sufficient links with a Scheme employer for the body and the Scheme employer to be regarded as having a community of interest, whether because the operations of the admission body are dependent on the operations of the Scheme employer or otherwise, or

(ii) is approved by the Secretary of State for the purpose of admission to the Scheme;

(b) a body to the funds of which any Scheme employer contributes;

(c) a body representative-

(i) of local authorities, or

(ii) of local authorities and officers of local authorities, or

(iii) of officers of local authorities, or

(iv) of Scheme employers;

(d) the Housing Corporation;

(e) Housing for Wales;

(f) the Commission for the New Towns;

(g) a company for the time being subject to the influence of a local authority as described in section 69 of the Local Government and Housing Act 1989;

(h) a body which-

(i) provides services or assets referred to in a best value arrangement or part of such services or assets,

(ii) is nominated to exercise a function specified in a section 15 direction, or

(iii) is specified in section 497A directions to perform a function or part of it.

    (4) But the governors or managers of a voluntary school do not count as a body within paragraph (3)(a) or (b) and a body is only within paragraph (3)(c)(iii) if it is formed for the purpose of consultation as to the common interests of local authorities and the discussion of matters relating to local government.

    (5) Approval under paragraph (3)(a)(ii) may be subject to such conditions as the Secretary of State thinks fit and he may withdraw approval at any time if such conditions are not met.

    (6) It must be a term of an admission agreement made with a non-associated admission body within paragraph (3)(b) that the Scheme employer who provides funding (and, if more than one, all of them) guarantees the liability of the admission body to pay all amounts due from it under the Regulations.

    (7) In the case of an admission agreement with a transferee admission body-

(a) the transferor Scheme employer, if not also the administering authority, must be a party to the admission agreement;

(b) only those employees of the transferee admission body who are employed in connection with-

(i) the provision of the services or assets referred to in the best value arrangement,

(ii) the function specified in the section 15 direction, or

(iii) the function or part of it to which the section 497A directions apply are eligible to be members of the Scheme;

(c) it shall require an indemnity or bond in an approved form and with an authorised insurer or a relevant institution; and

(d) provision shall be made for the matters set out in Schedule 2A.

    (8) Where a transferor Scheme employer and a transferee admission body undertake to meet the requirements of paragraph (7), an administering authority must admit to the Scheme the eligible employees of the transferee admission body and, where it does so, the terms on which it does so are the admission agreement for the purposes of these Regulations.

    (9) An admission agreement must terminate if the admission body ceases to be such a body.

    (10) An admission agreement may make such other provision about its termination as the parties consider appropriate.

    (11) When an administering authority make an admission agreement, they must promptly inform the Secretary of State of the date the agreement takes effect, the admission body's name and, in the case of an admission agreement with a transferee admission body, the name of the relevant transferor Scheme employer.

    (12) An administering authority must notify the Commissioners of Inland Revenue of the admission of an admission body within the time prescribed in regulations made under section 605 of the Taxes Act and provide such information as may be so prescribed.

    (13) An administering authority and an admission body may make an admission agreement despite the fact that they do not exercise their functions or provide services or assets in areas which overlap or adjoin each other.

    (14) Any question which may arise between the administering authority and any other party to an admission agreement relating to the construction of the agreement or to the rights and obligations under that agreement shall be referred in writing for determination to the Secretary of State.

    (15) An employee of an admission body may not be a member if he is a member of another occupational pension scheme (within the meaning of section 1 of the Pension Schemes Act 1993) other than where the accrual of benefits under that pension scheme would not affect approval of the Scheme as an approved scheme.

    (16) These Regulations apply to employment with an admission body in which the employee is an active member in the same way as if the body were a Scheme employer.

    (17) In this regulation, regulation 6 and Schedule 2A (where applicable)-

(a) "authorised insurer" means-

(i) an insurance company authorised under section 3 or 4 of the Insurance Companies Act 1982 to carry on long term business, or

(ii) an EC company which is lawfully carrying on long term business, or providing long term insurance, in the United Kingdom, and expressions used in this definition and the Insurance Companies Act 1982 have the same meaning as in that Act;

(b) "best value arrangement" means a contract or other arrangement made with a transferor Scheme employer for the provision of, or making available of, services or assets, for the purposes of or in connection with the exercise of a function of that transferor Scheme employer;

(c) "indemnity or bond in an approved form" means an indemnity or bond to meet a level of risk exposure arising on premature termination of the best value arrangement actuarially assessed to the satisfaction of the administering authority and the transferor Scheme employer;

(d) "local authority" for the purposes of paragraph (3)(c) and (g) includes the Greater London Authority;

(e) "non-associated admission body" means a body described in-

(i) paragraph (3)(a)(ii), or

(ii) paragraph (3)(b) where, at the date that the admission agreement is made, the total contribution from any one or more Scheme employers to its funds equals less than 50% of funding contributed by third parties;

(f) "relevant institution" means-

(i) an institution authorised under Part I of the Banking Act 1987 (regulation of deposit-taking business),

(ii) a person to whom the restriction on acceptance of deposits in section 3 of that Act does not apply because he is specified in Schedule 2 to that Act (Central banks etc.), or

(iii) a European authorised institution which has lawfully established a branch in the United Kingdom for the purpose of accepting deposits,

and "European authorised institution" has the same meaning as in the Banking Co-ordination (Second Council Directive) Regulations 1992;

(g) "section 15 direction" means a direction given under section 15 of the Local Government Act 1999;

(h) "section 497A directions" means directions made under section 497A of the Education Act 1996;

(i) "transferee admission body" means an admission body described in paragraph (3)(h); and

(j) "transferor Scheme employer" means an authority or body which is a Scheme employer and is-

(i) named in section 1(1) of the Local Government Act 1999 as a best value authority for the purposes of Part I of the Local Government Act 1999, or
(ii) mentioned in section 2(1) of that Act as an authority or body which the Secretary of State may by order provide is a best value authority for those purposes.

6.-(1) If a person's employment entitles him to belong to another statutory pension scheme, that employment does not entitle him to be a member, unless that other scheme was made under section 7 of the Superannuation Act 1972.

(2) A statutory pension scheme is an occupational pension scheme provided by or under an enactment (including a local Act).

(2A) A person who is not eligible for membership of a Teachers scheme because of the provisions of regulation B4(2) of the Teachers' Pensions Regulations 1997 (re-employed teachers) is not entitled to be a member.(SI1999/1212)

(3) A person may not become a member after his 65th birthday unless-

(a) his total membership does not exceed his permitted maximum; and

(b) he is a permitted late member.

(4) The permitted maximum for a Class A member is 40 years.

(5) The permitted maximum for a Class B member or a Class C member is the sum of-

(a) his total membership before he attained 60 or, if less, 40 years, and

(b) his total membership since he attained 60,

or, if less, 45 years.

(6) A permitted late member is a person to whom-

(a) a pension which must be the subject of a policy formulated under regulation 109 (statements of policy concerning abatement of retirement pensions in new employment),

(b) an ill-health grant under regulation 27(3) or an ill-health retirement grant under regulation D8 of the 1995 regulations, regulation E4 of the 1986 regulations or regulation E20 of the 1974 regulations, or

(c) a short service grant under the Benefits regulations,

has become payable, or who is entitled to or has received relevant compensation.

(7) Relevant compensation is compensation which-

(a) is payable under any enactment for loss of employment or loss or reduction of employment benefits attributable to an enactment, and

(b) is liable to be reduced or suspended by reason of the person to whom it is payable entering employment with a Scheme employer, in the same way as it would have been if he had remained eligible to belong to the occupational pension scheme to which he belonged or was eligible to belong immediately before suffering the loss.

(8) If a person has been entitled to an ill-health pension calculated by reference to an enhanced membership period, that period is counted as part of his total membership for paragraphs (3) (4) (SI1998/1238) and (5).

(9) Part-time employment as a member of a fire brigade maintained in pursuance of the Fire Services Act 1947 on terms under which the employee is or may be required to engage in fire fighting does not entitle the employee to be a member of the Scheme.

(10) (SI1999/3438) A person who is a member and is an employee of a transferee admission body is treated as leaving a local government employment when he ceases to be employed in connection with-

(a) the services or assets referred to in the best value arrangement,

(b) the function specified in the section 15 direction, or

(c) the function to which the section 497A directions apply.

 

Joining and leaving the Scheme

7.-(1) A person who wishes to become an active member must apply in writing to his employer or future employer.

(2) An eligible person who applies before he begins his employment becomes a member when his employment begins unless he applies to join later.

(3) An eligible employee who applies becomes a member on the first day of the first payment period following the application.

(4) A payment period is a period of service to which the employee's wages or salary payment relate.

(5) An employee is deemed to have applied to become a member, unless he notified his employer in writing that he did not wish to do so-

(a) before his employment began, or

(b) if he only became eligible to be a member later, before the date he became eligible.

(6) But paragraph (5) does not apply-

(a) to employees of admission bodies,

(b) to casual employees, or

(c) to former members who opted to leave the Scheme by a notification under regulation 8.

(7) An application for membership may be withdrawn before membership begins.

(8) A former active member may reapply for such membership.

(9) But a person who has given more than one notification under regulation 8 may only reapply again if-

(a) his employer or future employer consents; or

b) he is beginning a new employment with a new employing authority and he reapplies before he has been employed for three months, or

(c) he is a person about whom information may be given under section 172(1) of the Pensions Act 1995, as it has effect in the case of the Scheme (see regulation 108A). (SI1997/1613)

8.-(1) A person may leave the Scheme if he wishes and stops being a member if he stops being eligible for membership.

(2) A person who wishes to leave the Scheme must notify his employer in writing.

(3) A member who gives such a notification stops being a member from the date the notification specifies.

(4) But, if a date earlier than the notification or no date is specified, he stops being a member at the end of the payment period during which the notification is given.

(5) Where notification is given by a person before he has been a member for three months, he must be treated as not having been a member in that period.