The Pensions Increase (Approved Schemes) (National Health Service) Amendment Regulations 1991

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regualtions further amend the Pensions Increase (Approved Schemes) (National Health Service) Regulations 1976 (“the 1976 Regulations”). Those Regulations provide for payments to certain persons who, having elected to secure their superannuation benefits through schemes which operate by way of insurance policies to produce lump sums or annuities, or both, on retirement (persons who so elect being known as “optants”), have retired from employment in the National Health Service, and would have been eligible for increases under the Pensions (Increase) Act 1971 had they been pensionable under the National Health Service superannuation scheme.

By these Regulations—

(a) the provision made for optants (and certain other persons) who left the employment of an employing authority and entered certain other employment is amended so that it is no longer expressed to be subject to the approval of the Secretary of State (regulation 2(2)), and

(b) the provision made for the former local authority employees who have become superannuable under the National Health Service (Superannuation) Regulations 1961 as amended is extended so as to include those who left local authority employment before 1st April 1972 (regulation 2(3)).