Parliamentary Pensions etc. Act 1984

2 Increase of rate of contributions from office-holders and calculation of their pensions

(1) In section 4 of the 1972 Act (contributions from participants under section 2 of that Act)—

(a) in subsection (2), for the words from " at a time " to " five per cent. " there shall be substituted the words " for a period or part of a period during which he was not a Member of the House of Commons, is the appropriate percentage " ;

(b) in subsection (3), for the words from " at a time " to " difference " there shall be substituted the words " for a period or part of a period during which he was a Member of the House of Commons, is the appropriate percentage of the difference at the end of that period or part of a period "; and

(c) after the said subsection (3) there shall be inserted the following subsection—

“(3AA) For the purposes of subsections (2) and (3) of this section, the appropriate percentage, in relation to a payment of salary made for any period or part of a period, is—

(a) in the case of a period or part of a period beginning before 1st August 1984, five per cent.;

(b) in the case of a period or part of a period beginning on or after 1st August 1984 and before 1st January 1985, six per cent.;

(c) in the case of a period or part of a period beginning on or after 1st January 1985 and before 1st January 1986, seven per cent.;

(d) in the case of a period or part of a period beginning on or after 1st January 1986 and before 1st January 1987, eight per cent.; and

(e) in the case of a period or part of a period beginning on or after 1st January 1987, nine per cent”.

(2) In section 10 of the 1972 Act (annual amount of officeholder's pension under section 9 of that Act), for paragraph (b) of subsection (2) (calculation of contribution factor by reference to five per cent, of a Member's pensionable salary for particular years), there shall be substituted the following paragraph—

“(b) an amount equal, subject to subsection (2A) of this section, to the aggregate amount which fell to be deducted under section 3(1) of this Act from the payments of salary made in respect of that year to any person who was a Member of the House of Commons throughout that year,”.

(3) After subsection (2) of the said section 10 there shall be inserted the following subsection—

“(2A) For the purposes of subsection (2)(b) of this section the appropriate percentage for the purposes of section 3(2) of this Act shall be deemed, in relation to any payment of salary made to a Member of the House of Commons in respect of any period beginning before 1st August 1984, to have been five per cent.”.

(4) In subsection (3) of the said section 10 (contribution credit calculated by reference to one-sixtieth of the relevant terminal salary)—

(a) for the words " one-sixtieth " there shall be substituted the words " the appropriate fraction "; and

(b) for the words " the next following subsection " there shall be substituted the words " subsection (3B) and (4) of this section " .

(5) After subsection (3) of the said section 10 there shall be inserted the following subsections—

“(3A) In subsection (3) of this section ' the appropriate fraction' means—

(a) in relation to the year beginning with 1st April 1984 and subsequent years, one-fiftieth ;

(b) in relation to the year beginning with 1st April 1982 and previous years, one-sixtieth; and

(c) in relation to the year beginning with 1st April 1983.—

(i) in the case of a person who held a qualifying office at some time in the period beginning with 1st April 1983 and ending with 19th July 1983 but did not hold such an office at any time in the period beginning with 20th July and ending with 31st March 1984, one-sixtieth;

(ii) in the case of a person who did not hold such an office at any time in the first of those periods but did hold such an office at some time in the second of those periods, one-fiftieth; and

(iii) in the case of a person who held such an office at some time in each of those periods, nineteen-thousandths.

(3B) The annual amount of the pension payable to a person under section 9 of this Act shall not exceed the amount equal to two-thirds of the product of—

(a) the relevant terminal salary, and

(b) the average of all the contribution factors calculated in relation to that person under subsection (2) of this section,

except to the extent that the said annual amount is calculated by reference to any years beginning after that person attained the age of sixty-five years; and the said annual amount shall not, in any event, exceed such maximum pension as may for the time being be imposed in relation to that person by an order under subsection (3C) of this section.

(3C) The Lord President of the Council may by order made by statutory instrument make provision, in relation to persons to whom pensions are payable under that section, as to the maximum pensions so payable and for the calculation of those maximum pensions in such manner and by reference to such matters as may from time to time be specified in the order; and, without prejudice to the foregoing, such an order may—

(a) make different provision for different cases ;

(b) require maximum pensions to be calculated by reference to the opinion of the Trustees or require any matter to be established to their satisfaction; and

(c) provide for the amount of a maximum pension to be calculated by applying such maximum as may be specified in or determined under the order to a part only of the amount which, apart from the order, would be the annual amount of the pension in question.”.

(6) After subsection (6) of the said section 10 there shall be inserted the following subsection—

“(6A) A statutory instrument containing an order made under subsection (3C) above shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.”.

(7) In consequence of the preceding provisions of this section, in the said section 10—

(a) in subsection (4), for the words " to (3)" there shall be substituted the words " to (3B) "; and

(b) in subsection (5), for the words " and (3) of this section ' year' means " there shall be substituted the words " to (3B) of this section ' year ' (except in the expression ' sixty-five years ') means " .

(8) Subsections (2) to (7) above shall be deemed to have come into force on 20th July 1983 but shall not have effect in relation to any pension which first became payable under the 1972 Act before that date ; and, accordingly, an order made under section 10(30 of the 1972 Act (inserted by subsection (5) above) may provide for the order to be treated as having come into force, in relation to the pensions to which it applies, at any time after 19th July 1983.