Explanatory note

These Regulations amend the Civil Service (Other Crown Servants) Pension Scheme Regulations 2016 (the “2016 Regulations”) (S.I. 2016/326). The 2016 Regulations established a scheme for the payment of pensions and other benefits to civil servants employed by the Secret Intelligence Service and the Security Service. The scheme applies, with appropriate modifications, the rules set out in the Public Service (Civil Servants and Others) Pensions Regulations 2014 (S.I. 2014/1964), which established the Civil Service pension scheme, known as Alpha.

Regulation 3 sets out the revised annualised rate of pensionable earnings bands and provides for these bands to be uprated by reference to the consumer prices index. Regulation 3 also provides for the member contributions rates for the scheme year ending on 31st March 2020 to apply to the 1st April 2020 to 31st March 2021 scheme year and subsequently. Since these Regulations involve a change to a protected element of the scheme, the Minister has consulted representatives of those likely to be affected by the change with a view to reaching agreement and has laid a report before Parliament.

A full impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument as no, or no significant, impact on the private, voluntary or public sector is foreseen.