General
Breach of regulations
113.—(1) Regulations made by virtue of any provisions of this Part may provide for the contravention of any provision contained in any such regulations to be an offence under this Part and for the recovery on summary conviction for any such offence of a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale.
(2) An offence under any provision of the regulations may be charged by reference to any day or longer period of time; and a person may be convicted of a second or subsequent offence under such a provision by reference to any period of time following the preceding conviction of the offence.
(3) Where by reason of the contravention of any provision contained in regulations made by virtue of this Part—
(a)a person is convicted of an offence under this Part, or
(b)a person pays a penalty under Article 10,
then, in respect of that contravention, he shall not, in a case within sub-paragraph (a), be liable to pay such a penalty or, in a case within sub-paragraph (b), be convicted of such an offence.
Overriding requirements
114.—(1) Where any provision mentioned in paragraph (2) conflicts with the provisions of an occupational pension scheme—
(a)the provision mentioned in paragraph (2), to the extent that it conflicts, overrides the provisions of the scheme, and
(b)the scheme has effect with such modifications as may be required in consequence of sub-paragraph (a).
(2) The provisions referred to in paragraph (1) are those of—
(a)this Part,
(b)any subordinate legislation made or having effect as if made under this Part, or
(c)any arrangements under Article 16(1) or 17(2).
Powers to modify this Part
115.—(1) Regulations may modify any provisions of this Part, in their application—
(a)to a trust scheme which applies to earners in employments under different employers,
(b)to a trust scheme of which there are no members who are in pensionable service under the scheme, or
(c)to any case where a partnership is the employer, or one of the employers, in relation to a trust scheme.
(2) Regulations may provide for Articles 22 to 26, and Article 114 (so far as it applies to those Articles), not to apply in relation to a trust scheme falling within a prescribed class or description.
Calculations, etc. under regulations: sub-delegation
116. Regulations made by virtue of Article 56(3), 73(3) or 75 may provide for the values of the assets and the amounts of the liabilities there mentioned to be calculated and verified in accordance with guidance—
(a)prepared and revised by a prescribed body, and
(b)approved by the Department.
Consultations about regulations
117.—(1) Before the Department makes any regulations by virtue of this Part, It must consult such persons as it considers appropriate.
(2) Paragraph (1) does not apply—
(a)to regulations made for the purpose only of consolidating other regulations revoked by them,
(b)to regulations in the case of which the Department considers consultation inexpedient because of urgency,
(c)to regulations made before the end of the period of six months beginning with the coming into operation of the provision of this Part by virtue of which the regulations are made,
(d)to regulations which—
(i)state that they are consequential upon a specified enactment, and
(ii)are made before the end of the period of six months beginning with the coming into operation of that enactment, or
(e)to regulations making only provision corresponding to provision contained in regulations made by the Secretary of State in relation to Great Britain.
Crown application
118.—(1) This Part applies to an occupational pension scheme managed by or on behalf of the Crown as it applies to other occupational pension schemes; and, accordingly, references in this Part to a person in his capacity as a trustee or manager of an occupational pension scheme include the Crown, or a person acting on behalf of the Crown, in that capacity.
(2) References in this Part to a person in his capacity as employer in relation to an occupational pension scheme include the Crown, or a person acting on behalf of the Crown, in that capacity.
(3) This Article does not apply to any provision made by or under this Part under which a person may be prosecuted for an offence; but such a provision applies to persons in the public service of the Crown as it applies to other persons.
(4) This Article does not apply to Article 42 to 46 (but see the amendment of Article 79 (1) of the Industrial Relations (Northern Ireland) Order 1976(1) in Schedule 1).
(5) Nothing in this Part applies to Her Majesty in Her private capacity (within the meaning of the Crown Proceedings Act 1947(2)).
(6) Subject to paragraphs (1) to (5), this Part binds the Crown to the full extent authorised by the constitutional laws of Northern Ireland.
Consequential amendments
119. Schedule 1 (amendments consequential on this Part) has effect.
“Connected” and “associated” persons
120.—(1) Articles 4 and 7 of the Insolvency (Northern Ireland) Order 1989(3) (associated and connected persons) apply for the purposes of the provisions of this Order listed in paragraph (2) as they apply for the purposes of any provision of that Order.
(2) The provisions referred to in paragraph (1) are—
(a)Article 23(3)(b)
(b)Articles 27 and 28,
(c)Article 40,
but in the case of Article 40 the provisions mentioned in paragraph (1) shall apply for those purposes with any prescribed modifications.
Interpretation of Part II
121.—(1) In this Part—
“active member”, in relation to an occupational pension scheme, means a person who is in pensionable service under the scheme,
“the actuary” and “the auditor”, in relation to an occupational pension scheme, have the meanings given by Article 47,
“the Authority” means the Occupational Pensions Regulatory Authority;
“the Compensation Board” means the Pensions Compensation Board.
“the compensation provisions” has the meaning given by Article 79(3),
“the Crown” means the Crown in right of Her Majesty’s government in Northern Ireland or in right of Her Majesty’s government in the United Kingdom;
“deferred member”, in relation to an occupational pension scheme, means a person (other than an active or pensioner member) who has accrued rights under the scheme,
“employer”, in relation to an occupational pension scheme, means the employer of persons in the description or category of employment to which the scheme in question relates (but see Article 122(3)),
“equal treatment rule” has the meaning given by Article 62,
“firm” means a body corporate or a partnership,
“fund manager”, in relation to an occupational pension scheme, means a person who manages the investments held for the purposes of the scheme,
“government department” means a Northern Ireland department or a department of the government of the United Kingdom;
“independent trustee” has the meaning given by Article 23(3),
“managers”, in relation to an occupational pension scheme other than a trust scheme, means the persons responsible for the management of the scheme,
“member”, in relation to an occupational pension scheme, means any active, deferred or pensioner member (but see Article 122(4)),
“member-nominated director” has the meaning given by Article 18(2),
“member-nominated trustee” has the meaning given by Article 16(2),
“the minimum funding requirement” has the meaning given by Article 56(1),
“normal pension age” has the meaning given by section 175 of the Pension Schemes Act,
“payment schedule” has the meaning given by Article 85(2),
“pensionable service”, in relation to a member of an occupational pension scheme, means service in any description or category of employment to which the scheme relates which qualifies the member (on the assumption that it continues for the appropriate period) for pension or other benefits under the scheme,
“pensioner member”, in relation to an occupational pension scheme, means a person who, in respect of his pensionable service under the scheme or by reason of transfer credits, is entitled to the present payment of pension or other benefits, “prescribed” means prescribed by regulations,
“professional adviser”, in relation to a scheme, has the meaning given by Article 47,
“public service pension scheme” has the meaning given by section 1 of the Pension Schemes Act,
“resources”, in relation to an occupational pension scheme, means the funds out of which the benefits provided by the scheme are payable from time to time, including the proceeds of any policy of insurance taken out, or annuity contract entered into, for the purposes of the scheme,
“the Taxes Act 1988” means the Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1988(4),
“transfer credits” means rights allowed to a member under the rules of an occupational pension scheme by reference to a transfer to that scheme of his accrued rights from another scheme (including any transfer credits allowed by that scheme),
“trustees or managers”, in relation to an occupational pension scheme, means—
in the case of a trust scheme, the trustees of the scheme, and
in any other case, the managers of the scheme, “trust scheme” means an occupational pension scheme established under a trust
(2) For the purposes of this Part—
(a)the accrued rights of a member of an occupational pension scheme at any time are the rights which have accrued to or in respect of him at that time to future benefits under the scheme, and
(b)at any time when the pensionable service of a member of an occupational pension scheme is continuing, his accrued rights are to be determined as if he had opted, immediately before that time, to terminate that service,
and references to accrued pension or accrued benefits are to be interpreted accordingly.
(3) In determining what is “pensionable service” for the purposes of this Part—
(a)service notionally attributable for any purpose of the scheme is to be disregarded, and
(b)no account is to be taken of any rules of the scheme by which a period of service can be treated for any purpose as being longer or shorter than it actually is.
Article 121: supplementary
122.—(1) For the purposes of this Part, an occupational pension scheme is salary related if—
(a)the scheme is not a money purchase scheme, and
(b)the scheme does not fall within a prescribed class or description,
and “salary related trust scheme” is to be read accordingly.
(2) Regulations may apply this Part with prescribed modifications to occupational pension schemes—
(a)which are not money purchase schemes, but
(b)where some of the benefits that may be provided are money purchase benefits.
(3) Regulations may, in relation to occupational pension schemes, extend for the purposes of this Part the meaning of “employer” to include persons who have been the employer in relation to the scheme.
(4) For any of the purposes of this Part, regulations may in relation to occupational pension schemes—
(a)extend or restrict the meaning of “member”,
(b)determine who is to be treated as a prospective member, and
(c)determine the times at which a person is to be treated as becoming, or as ceasing to be, a member or prospective member.