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Scottish Parliamentary Pensions Act 2009

  • Explanatory Notes Table of contents

Please note:

All reference to 'Parts' and 'sections' are from the Scottish Parliamentary Pensions Act 2009. For other versions of these Explanatory Notes, see More Resources.

  1. Introduction

  2. Glossary of Terms and Statutes Used in the Notes

  3. Summary and Background to the Act

  4. Legislative Changes

    1. The Committee

    2. The Committee report

  5. Commentary on sections

    1. Section 1 Scottish Parliamentary Pension Scheme

    2. Section 2: Grants payable on leaving office

    3. Section 3: Modification of pension schemes etc.

    4. Section 4: Interpretation

    5. Section 5: Commencement

    6. Schedule 1

    7. Part A The Pension Fund

      1. Rule 2: The Pension Fund

      2. Rule 3: Payments to and from Fund

    8. Part B Fund Trustees

      1. Rule 4: Fund trustees

      2. Rule 5: Functions

      3. Rule 6: Number of trustees

      4. Rule 7: Eligibility

      5. Rule 8: Appointment of Fund trustees

      6. Rule 9: Remuneration, allowances and expenses

      7. Rule 10: Resignation

      8. Rule 11: Removal

      9. Rule 12: Change of status

      10. Rule 13: Member-nominated trustees

      11. Rule 14: Procedure

      12. Rule 15: Quorum

      13. Rule 16: Staff and advisers

      14. Rule 17: Fund management

      15. Rule 18: Indemnity insurance

      16. Rule 19: Delegation

      17. Rule 20: Validity of acts

    9. Part C Participating Members

      1. Rule 21: MSP members

      2. Rule 22: Office-holder members

      3. Rule 23: MSP opt-out

      4. Rule 24: Office-holder opt-out

      5. Rule 25: MSP opt-in

      6. Rule 26: Office-holder opt-in

    10. Part D Contributions

      1. Rule 27: Scheme member contributions

      2. Rule 28: Amount of scheme member contribution

      3. Rule 29: Procedure for changing scheme member contribution rate

      4. Rule 30: Relief from liability to make scheme member contributions

      5. Rule 31: Contributions when salary not drawn

      6. Rule 32: Contributions from the SPCB

    11. Part E Reckonable Service

      1. Rule 33: Reckonable service as an MSP

      2. Rule 34: Reckonable service as an office-holder

      3. Rule 35: Total reckonable service

      4. Rule 36: Measuring reckonable service

      5. Transitional provisions re: reckonable service

    12. Part F Pensions

      1. Rule 37: Scheme pension

      2. Rule 38: Amount of MSP pension

      3. Rule 39: Amount of office-holder pension

      4. Rule 40: Duration of scheme pension

      5. Rule 41: Suspension of scheme pension

    13. Part G Retirement Lump Sums

      1. Rule 42: Right to commute pension into a lump sum

      2. Rule 43: Payment of retirement lump sum and corresponding reduction in pension

      3. Rule 44: Special rule for commutation by individual approaching age of 75

      4. Rule 45: Commuting trivial amounts

    14. Part H Early Retirement

      1. Rule 46: Early retirement

      2. Transitional provisions applying to early retirement

    15. Part I Ill-Health

      1. Rule 47: Serious ill-health pension

      2. Rule 48: Ordinary ill-health pension

      3. Rule 49: Deferred pensioner’s ill-health pension

      4. Rule 50: Amount of serious ill-health pension

      5. Rule 51: Amount of ordinary ill-health pension

      6. Rule 52: Amount of deferred pensioner’s ill-health pension

      7. Rule 53: Review of ill-health pension entitlements

      8. Rule 54: Medical examinations

      9. Rule 55: Ill-health lump sums: life expectancy of less than one year

    16. Part J Surviving Partners and Children

      1. Rule 56: Meaning of scheme pension entitlement

        1. Chapter 2 Partners’ pensions

      2. Rule 57: Partner

      3. Rule 58: Partner’s pension

      4. Rule 59: Enhancement of initial partner’s pension

      5. Rule 60: Duration of partner’s pension

      6. Rule 61: Partner’s trivial lump sum

        1. Chapter 3 Children’s pensions

      7. Rule 62: Children’s pensions

      8. Rule 63: Eligible children

      9. Rule 64: Payment of children’s pension

      10. Transitional provisions – partner’s and children’s pensions

    17. Part K Lump Sum Death Benefits

      1. Rule 65: Death in service lump sum

      2. Rule 66: Nominations for death in service lump sum

      3. Rule 67: Deferred pensioner lump sum

    18. Part L 5 Year Guarantee

      1. Rule 68: Initial pension period

      2. Rule 69: Guaranteed pensions for surviving partner

      3. Rule 70: Guaranteed lump sum where scheme pensioner dies aged under 75 with no surviving partner

      4. Rule 71: Guaranteed pension where scheme pensioner dies aged 75 or over with no surviving partner

      5. Transitional provisions – 5 year guarantee

    19. Part M Short Service Refunds

      1. Rule 72: Payment of short service refunds

      2. Rule 73: Extinction of scheme benefits

      3. Deductions of tax from refunds

      4. Transitional provisions – short service refunds

    20. Part N Transfers

      1. Chapter 1

        Transfers Out

        1. Rule 74: Statement of entitlement

        2. Rule 75: Transfers to other pension schemes

        3. Rule 76: Enhancement of transferable sum

        4. Rule 77: Reduction of transferable sum

        5. Rule 78: Transfer payment

        6. Rule 79: Time limits

        7. Rule 80: Extinction of scheme benefits

      2. Chapter 2

        Transfers-in

        1. Rule 81: Transfer-in

        2. Rule 82: Effect of transfer-in

        3. Rule 83: Limitation on transfers-in

    21. Part O Added Years

      1. Rule 84: Added years

      2. Rule 85: Buying added years by instalments

      3. Rule 86: Interruption of service

      4. Rule 87: Resumption of service as MSP member

      5. Rule 88: Buying added years by lump sum

      6. Rule 89: Limitations on buying added years

      7. Rule 90: Multiple applications

    22. Part P Pension Sharing

      1. Overriding legislation

      2. Summary of Part P

      3. Provision of information, charging and apportionment of capital value

      4. Implementation of pension sharing order – internal and external transfers

      5. Rule 91: Rights of pension credit member

      6. Rule 92: Specific rules applying to a pension debit member

      7. Rule 93: Death before implementation of pension credit

    23. Part Q Dual Mandate MSPS

      1. Rule 94: Dual mandate MSPs

      2. Rule 95: Pension reduction for dual mandate MSPs

    24. Part R Taxes

      1. Rule 96: Finance Act 2004 terms

      2. Rule 97: Payment of lifetime allowance charge by scheme administrator

      3. Rule 98: Payment of lifetime allowance charge from Pension Fund

      4. Rule 99: Deductions for tax arising on lump sum payments

      5. Rule 100: Reduction of benefits which would otherwise attract unauthorised charge

      6. Rule 101: Prohibition of payments which would give rise to liability for certain taxes

    25. Part S Accounts, Audit and Actuarial Reports

      1. Rule 102: Accounts and audit

      2. Rule 103: Actuarial reports

        1. Actuaries

        2. Actuarial valuations

    26. Part T Miscellaneous

      1. Rule 104: Dispute resolution procedure

      2. Rule 105: Guaranteed minimum pension

      3. Rule 106: Restriction on assignability etc.

      4. Rule 107: Payments due in respect of deceased individuals

      5. Rule 108: Formal communications

    27. Part U Key Terms

    28. Schedule 2 grants Payable on Leaving Office

      1. Paragraph 1: MSP resettlement grant

      2. Paragraph 2: MSP ill-health retirement grant

      3. Paragraph 3: Amount of MSP grants

      4. Paragraph 4: Office-holder resettlement grant

        1. Treatment of grants for tax purposes

    29. Schedule 3 transitional Provisions and Savings

      1. Paragraph 1: Introductory

      2. Paragraph 2: Pension Fund

      3. Paragraph 3: Scheme membership

      4. Paragraph 4: Scheme member contributions

      5. Paragraph 5: Contributions from the SPCB

      6. Paragraph 6: Reckonable service as an MSP

      7. Paragraph 7: Reckonable service as an office-holder

      8. Paragraph 8: Total reckonable service

      9. Paragraph 9: Special provision for participants reaching age of 75 before the new rules day

      10. Paragraph 10: Payment of pensions due on new rules day etc.

      11. Paragraph 11: Entitlement of partners and children after new rules day

      12. Paragraph 12: Early retirement

      13. Paragraph 13: Partner’s and children’s pensions

      14. Paragraph 14: 5 year guarantee

      15. Paragraph 15: Deferred pensioner lump sums

      16. Paragraph 16: Short service refunds

      17. Paragraph 17: Transfers

      18. Paragraph 18: Added years

      19. Paragraph 19: AVC scheme

      20. Paragraph 20: Guaranteed minimum pension

      21. Paragraph 21: Presiding Officer and First Minister pension scheme

      22. Paragraph 22: General saving

      23. Paragraph 23: Disapplication of scheme modifications

  6. Parliamentary History

  • Explanatory Notes Table of contents

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Explanatory Notes

Text created by the Scottish Government to explain what the Act sets out to achieve and to make the Act accessible to readers who are not legally qualified. Explanatory Notes were introduced in 1999 and accompany all Acts of the Scottish Parliament except those which result from Budget Bills.

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