Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what (a) financial and (b) other support her Department provides to teachers who retire unexpectedly due to ill health.

Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)

Teachers who are members of the Teachers’ Pension Scheme who suffer ill-health such that they are assessed as being unable to continue working up until their Normal Pension Age, equal to State Pension Age, can access their accrued pension benefits without the usual actuarial adjustment being applied in view of early payment. In the most serious cases, an enhanced pension is payable, which is 50% of their projected accrual to their Normal Pension Age.

The department does not employ teachers, and it is the employer’s responsibility to offer any appropriate additional support to its employees.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an an assessment of the adequacy of the length of time taken by Teachers' Pensions to process applications for remedial service statements.

Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)

The information held on the number of complaints is provided in the table below.

596,000 members of the Teachers’ Pension Scheme require Remediable Service Statements (RSSs), setting out member choices as part of the Transitional Protection remedy, for the age discrimination that was identified as part of the public service pension scheme reforms implemented under the previous government in 2015. Approximately 532,000 have been issued by the end of March 2025.

Departmental officials continue to work closely with the scheme administrator on plans to issue the remaining RSSs, as soon as is practical.

Where RSSs are taking longer to issue, affected members can be assured that any difference to pension in payment as a result of their remedy period choice is backdated to when the pension began, with interest applied.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what information her Department holds on the number of complaints made against the service provided by Teachers' Pensions in the last five years.

Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)

The information held on the number of complaints is provided in the table below.

596,000 members of the Teachers’ Pension Scheme require Remediable Service Statements (RSSs), setting out member choices as part of the Transitional Protection remedy, for the age discrimination that was identified as part of the public service pension scheme reforms implemented under the previous government in 2015. Approximately 532,000 have been issued by the end of March 2025.

Departmental officials continue to work closely with the scheme administrator on plans to issue the remaining RSSs, as soon as is practical.

Where RSSs are taking longer to issue, affected members can be assured that any difference to pension in payment as a result of their remedy period choice is backdated to when the pension began, with interest applied.

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment her Department has of the adequacy of the range of communication methods used by Teachers' Pensions to contact their customers.

Answered by Catherine McKinnell - Minister of State (Education)

Teachers’ Pensions employs a wide range of communication methods to contact members of the scheme, including via member portal, website, telephone contact centre, webchat, text messaging, post, email and social media platforms.

The department regularly reviews contractual performance via an established management process to ensure the best possible service is provided to members of the Teachers’ Pension Scheme.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the (a) scope and (b) remit is of the Treasury review into Financial Ombudsman Service.

Answered by Emma Reynolds - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)

The Treasury will examine whether the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS), is delivering its role as a simple, impartial dispute resolution service which quickly and effectively deals with complaints against financial services firms, and which works in concert with our Financial Conduct Authority which regulates the sector.

The review will focus, in particular, on a range of points that have been raised through the recent Call for Evidence on the Growth and Competitiveness Strategy. This will include addressing concerns around:

• The framework in which the FOS operates which has led to it acting, at times, as a quasi-regulator;
• Whether the FOS is applying today’s standards to actions that have taken place in the past; and
• The practices that have grown up over time on compensation.

The review builds on the announcements the Chancellor made at Mansion House, as well as modernising the FCA’s rules for dispute resolution. As part of the review, the government will consider whether any legislative changes are necessary to ensure that we have a dispute resolution system in the UK which is fit for a modern economy.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent progress her Department has made on the development of digital gilts; and what assessment she has made on their potential impact on the UK financial system.

Answered by Emma Reynolds - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)

On 18 March 2025, the Chancellor of the Exchequer launched the procurement process for the pilot Digital Gilt Instrument (DIGIT) issuance.

Following the announcement, HMT and UK Debt Management Office published the first step in the process, which seeks views from industry to inform the development and delivery of the pilot DIGIT issuance. HMT issued a Preliminary Market Engagement Notice through the contract finder service. These publications provide further information on the scope of the pilot and seek views from potential suppliers and the financial services sector, to inform the development and delivery of DIGIT. This includes information on the current landscape of services available or in development in the UK and what potential investors want to see from a DIGIT issuance.

The market engagement exercise is the first step in our process. A formal tendering process is expected to be launched in late Spring 2025, with DLT suppliers being appointed by late Summer 2025.

The government bought forward secondary legislation at the end of the last year that will enable changes to be made to existing regulations relevant to issuing Government debt within the Digital Securities Sandbox (DSS). The current regulations may be unsuitable for a digital issuance and need to be temporarily modified to enable an issuance. Our market engagement is also intended to assist with understanding what elements of these laws need to be changed. Any necessary amendments will require HMT to lay a Statutory Instrument.

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether her Department has a planned timeline for the implementation of digital gilts; and when she expects to lay legislation before the House.

Answered by Emma Reynolds - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)

On 18 March 2025, the Chancellor of the Exchequer launched the procurement process for the pilot Digital Gilt Instrument (DIGIT) issuance.

Following the announcement, HMT and UK Debt Management Office published the first step in the process, which seeks views from industry to inform the development and delivery of the pilot DIGIT issuance. HMT issued a Preliminary Market Engagement Notice through the contract finder service. These publications provide further information on the scope of the pilot and seek views from potential suppliers and the financial services sector, to inform the development and delivery of DIGIT. This includes information on the current landscape of services available or in development in the UK and what potential investors want to see from a DIGIT issuance.

The market engagement exercise is the first step in our process. A formal tendering process is expected to be launched in late Spring 2025, with DLT suppliers being appointed by late Summer 2025.

The government bought forward secondary legislation at the end of the last year that will enable changes to be made to existing regulations relevant to issuing Government debt within the Digital Securities Sandbox (DSS). The current regulations may be unsuitable for a digital issuance and need to be temporarily modified to enable an issuance. Our market engagement is also intended to assist with understanding what elements of these laws need to be changed. Any necessary amendments will require HMT to lay a Statutory Instrument.

Found: New Amendments: 1 to 2 and NC1 to NC3 _NC1 Mark Garnier Mel Stride James Wild Blake Stephenson ★