The Health and Social Care (Pension Scheme) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2008

Interpretation: general

6.—(1) In Part I and in this Part—

“the 1972 Order” means the Health and Personal Social Services (Northern Ireland) Order 1972(1);

“the 1993 Act” means the Pension Schemes (Northern Ireland) Act 1993(2);

“the 1995 Order” means the Pensions (Northern Ireland) Order 1995(3);

“the 1995 Regulations” means the Health and Personal Social Services (Superannuation) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1995(4);

“the 1997 Order” means the Health Services (Primary Care) (Northern Ireland) Order 1997(5);

“the 1999 Order” means the Welfare Reform and Pensions (Northern Ireland) Order 1999(6);

“the 2003 Order” means the General and Specialist Medical Practice (Education, Training and Qualifications) Order 2003(7);

“the 2004 Order” means the General Medical Services Transitional and Consequential Provisions (No.2) (Northern Ireland) Order 2004(8);

“the Agency” means the Northern Ireland Central Services Agency for the Health and Social Services established under Article 26 of the 1972 Order;

“active member” has the meaning given in Article 121 (1) of the 1995 Order and, except where the context otherwise requires, refers to membership of the Scheme (but see regulation 49(9));

“additional pension”, in relation to a member, except where the context otherwise requires, means so much of any pension payable to a member as is payable by virtue of contributions made under regulations 34, 36 and 37;

“additional services” has the meaning given in regulation 137;

“APMS contract” means arrangements under Article 56 (2)(b) of the 1972 Order (primary medical services) between a Health and Social Services Board and an APMS contractor;

“APMS contractor” means a person—

(a)

with whom a Health and Social Services Board has made arrangements under Article 56 (2)(b) of the 1972 Order, and

(b)

who has entered into, or would be eligible to enter into, a GMS contract for the provision of primary medical services;

“assistant medical practitioner” has the meaning given in regulation 137;

“bank holiday” means any day that is specified or proclaimed as a bank holiday, pursuant to section 1 of the Banking and Financial Dealings Act 1971(9);

“base rate” means the Bank of England base rate—

(a)

announced from time to time by the Monetary Policy Committee of the Bank of England as the official dealing rate, being the rate at which the Bank is willing to enter into transactions for providing short term liquidity in the money markets, or

(b)

where an order under section 19 of the Bank of England Act 1998 is in force, any equivalent rate determined by Treasury under that section;

“buy-out policy” means a policy of insurance or annuity contract that is appropriate for the purposes of section 15 of the 1993 Act (extinguishment of liability of scheme for pensions secured by insurance policies or annuity contracts) and “buy out” must be read accordingly;

“capped transferred-in service” must be read in accordance with regulation 104;

“cash equivalent” is to be construed in accordance with Chapter IV of Part IV of the 1993 Act;

“CCT” means a Certificate of Completion of Training awarded under article 8 of the 2003 Order, including any such certificate awarded in pursuance of the competent authority functions of the Postgraduate Medical Education and Training Board specified in article 20(3)(a) of that Order;

“certification services” has the meaning given in regulation 137;

“chapter” unless otherwise specified, means a chapter in this Part;

“collaborative services” has the meaning given in regulation 137;

“commissioned services” has the meaning given in regulation 137;

“contracting-out requirements” means the requirements mentioned in section 5(2) of the 1993 Act;

“contribution option period” has the meaning given in regulation 34(8);

“corresponding health service scheme” has the meaning given in regulation 103(7);

“deferred member” has the meaning given in section 121(1) of the 1995 Order, except where the context requires otherwise, refers to membership of the Scheme (but see paragraph (2) and regulation 49(9));

“dentist performer” means a dentist who has undertaken to provide general dental services (GDS) and whose name is included in a list of dentists prepared by the Agency under regulation 4 of the Health and Personal Social Services General Dental Services Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1993(10);

“Department” means the Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety;

“dependent child” is to be construed in accordance with regulation 75;

“dispensing services” has the meaning given in regulation 137;

“employing authority” means—

(a)

a Health and Social Services Board established under Article 16 of the 1972 Order,

(b)

a Health and Social Services Trust established under Article 10 of the Health and Personal Social Services (Northern Ireland) Order 1991 (HSS Trusts)(11),

(c)

the Agency,

(d)

any other body which is constituted under an Order relating to health services and which the Department agrees to treat as an employing authority for the purposes of the Scheme,

(e)

an OOH provider,

(f)

an APMS contractor,

(g)

a GMS practice,

(h)

a PMS practice, and

(i)

in relation to a person who is subject to a direction made under Article 12 (5) of the Superannuation (Northern Ireland) Order 1972, and subject to such modifications to this Part as the Department may in any particular case direct, any employer of such a person whom the Department agrees to treat as an employing authority for the purposes of this Part;

“employment” includes an office or appointment (other than an honorary office or appointment), and related expressions are to be read accordingly;

“enhanced services” has the meaning given in regulation 137;

“essential services” has the meaning given in regulation 137;

“GDS arrangements” means arrangements for the provision of general dental services under Article 61 of the 1972 Order;

“GDS provider” is a person who is a party to GDS arrangements;

“GMS contract” means a contract under Articles 57 and 57A of the 1972 Order;

“GMS practice” means—

(a)

a registered medical practitioner,

(b)

two or more individuals practising in partnership, or

(c)

a company limited by shares,

with whom a Health and Social Services Board has entered into a GMS contract;

“GP performer” means a registered medical practitioner, other than a GP Register or a locum practitioner, whose name is included in a medical performers list and who performs essential services, additional services, enhanced services, dispensing services, collaborative services, commissioned services, OOH services or certification services (or a combination of those services)—

(a)

under a GMS contract or an APMS contract,

(b)

on behalf of an OOH provider, or

(c)

under a contract of service or for services with a Health and Social Services Board which relates to arrangements under which it provides primary medical services under Article 56 of the 1972 Order;

“GP Registrar” means a medical practitioner who is being trained in general practice by a general medical practitioner who is approved under article 4(5)(d) of the 2003 Order for the purpose of providing training under article 5(1)(c)(i) of that Order, whether as part of training leading to the award of a CCT or otherwise;

“GP trainer” means a registered medical practitioner who is approved by the Postgraduate Medical Education and Training Board under article 4(5)(d) of the 2003 Order for the purposes of providing training to a GP Registrar under article 5(1)(c)(i) of that Order;

“HSC employment” means employment with an employing authority;

“the HPSS Superannuation Scheme 1995” means the scheme set out in the 1995 Regulations;

“the guarantee date” has the meaning given in regulation 94(2);

“guaranteed cash equivalent transfer value payment” has the meaning given in regulation 95(3);

“guaranteed minimum pension” means guaranteed minimum pension, or accrued rights to guaranteed minimum pension, under section 10 of the 1993 Act;

“host Board”—

(a)

in respect of a non-GP provider who is—

(i)

a partner in a partnership—

(aa)

that is a GMS practice; or

(bb)

that is an APMS contractor that has entered into an APMS contract for the provision of primary medical services;

(ii)

a shareholder in a company limited by shares that is a GMS practice or an APMS contractor that has entered into an APMS contract for the provision of primary medical services;

(iii)

an individual who is an APMS contractor,

means the Health and Social Services Board with which that partnership (in the case of sub-paragraph (i)), company (in the case of sub-paragraph (ii)) or practice or contractor (in the case of sub-paragraph (iii)) has entered into an agreement or contract referred to in those provisions;

(b)

in respect of a registered medical practitioner, means the Health and Social Services Board on whose medical performers list his name appears;

“lifetime allowance”, in relation to a person, has the meaning given in section 218 of the Finance Act 2004(12);

“locum practitioner” has the meaning given in regulation 137;

“lower earnings limit” must be read in accordance with section 5 of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act (Northern Ireland)1992(13);

“lump sum rule” has the meaning given in section 166 of the Finance Act 2004;

“lump sum death benefit rule” has the meaning given in section 168 of the Finance Act 2004;

“member”, except where the context otherwise requires, means an active member, a deferred member, a pensioner member or a pension credit member;

“medical performers list” means a list of registered medical practitioners prepared and published in accordance with the Health and Personal Social Services (Primary Medical Services Performers Lists) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2004(14);

“non-GP provider” means—

(a)

a partner in a partnership that is a GMS practice who is not a GP provider and who demonstrates to the satisfaction of the Department that non-GP provider assists in the provision of health and personal social services provided by that practice;

(b)

a partner in a partnership all of whose members have entered into an agreement for the provision of primary medical services—

(i)

but who is not a GP provider; and

(ii)

who demonstrates to the satisfaction of the Department that non-GP provider assists in the provision of health and personal social services provided by that partnership;

(c)

a partner in a partnership that is an APMS contractor that has entered into an APMS contract for the provision of primary medical services—

(i)

but who is not a GP provider; and

(ii)

who demonstrates to the satisfaction of the Department that non-GP provider assists in the provision of health and personal social services provided by that partnership;

(d)

a shareholder in a company limited by shares that is—

(i)

a GMS practice; or

(ii)

an APMS contractor that has entered into an APMS contract for the provision of primary medical services,

but who is not a GP provider and who demonstrates to the satisfaction of the Department that non-GP provider assists in the provision of health and personal social services provided by that company;

(e)

an individual who is an APMS contractor but who is not a GP provider and who demonstrates to the satisfaction of the Department that non-GP provider participates in the provision of health and personal social services;

“occupational pension scheme” means an occupational pension scheme within the meaning of section 1 of the 1993 Act which—

(a)

in the case of such a scheme established on, or after, the 6th April 2006 is a registered pension scheme for the purposes of the Finance Act 2004 and which the Department agrees to recognise as a transferring scheme for the purposes of Chapter 6;

(b)

in the case of such a scheme established before that date, was—

(i)

approved by the Commissioners for Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs for the purposes of Chapter I of Part XIV of the Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1988(15) (retirement benefits schemes) or whose application for approval under that Chapter was under consideration,

(ii)

a statutory scheme as defined in section 612(1) of the Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1988 (interpretation), or

(iii)

a scheme to which section 608 of the Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1988 applied (superannuation funds approved before 6th April 1980),

and on 6th April 2006 became a registered pension scheme for the purposes of the Finance Act 2004 ;

“officer” means a person (other than a GP performer) employed by an employing authority and includes a GP Registrar;

“OOH provider” has the meaning given in regulation 20;

“OOH services” means services which are required to be provided in the out of hours period and which, if provided during core hours by a GMS practice to patients to whom the practice is required by its GMS contract to provide essential services, would be or would be similar to essential services;

“opting-out” and related expressions are to be construed in accordance with regulation 25;

“pay period” means—

(a)

in relation to a member who receives regular payments for his service under a contract for services or contract of employment, means the period in respect of which each payment of salary, wages or fees is made in accordance with that contract;

(b)

in all other cases, any period of three months ending on the last day of March, June, September or December;

“pensionable earnings” has the meaning given in regulation 143 (read with regulation 144);

“pensionable employment” means employment as an officer which is pensionable under this Part;

“pensionable pay” has the meaning given in regulation 13 (read with regulation 14);

“pensionable service” has the meaning given in regulations 7 and 8 (read with regulation 9);

“pensioner member” has the meaning given in Article 121(1) of the 1995 Order and, except where the context otherwise requires, refers to membership of the Scheme (but see paragraphs (2) and (3) and regulation 49(9));

“pension credit” means a credit under Article 26 of the 1999 Order and includes a credit under section 29(1)(b) of the Welfare Reform and Pensions Act 1999(16);

“pension credit benefit” has the meaning given by section 97B of the 1993 Act;

“pension credit member” has the meaning given by Article 121(1) of the 1995 Order;

“pension credit rights” has the meaning given by section 97B of the 1993 Act;

“pension sharing order or provision” means such an order or provision as is mentioned in Article 25 (1) of the 1999 Order;

“personal pension scheme” means a personal pension scheme which—

(a)

in the case of such a scheme established on, or after, 6th April 2006 is a registered pension scheme for the purposes of the Finance Act 2004 and which the Department agrees to recognise as a transferring scheme for the purposes of Chapter 6;

(b)

in the case of a scheme established before that date, was—

(i)

approved by the Commissioners for Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs for the purposes of Chapter IV of Part XIV of the Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1988 (personal pension schemes); and

(ii)

on the 6th April 2006 became a registered pension scheme for the purposes of the Finance Act 2004;

“practice staff” means a person who—

(a)

is not an assistant medical practitioner, a principal medical practitioner, a GP Registrar or a non-GP provider, and

(b)

is employed by a GMS practice, an APMS contractor or an OOH provider to assist in the provision of the services it provides;

“practitioner” means—

(a)

a registered medical practitioner who—

(i)

is not a GP Registrar, and

(ii)

is a locum practitioner, a GP provider or a GP performer, or

(b)

a dentist performer;

“preservation requirements” means the requirements of Chapter 1 of Part IV of the 1993 Act relating to the preservation of benefits under occupational pension schemes;

“public sector transfer arrangements” means arrangements approved by the Department as providing reciprocal arrangements for the payment and receipt of transfer values between the Scheme and other occupational pension schemes;

“qualifying service” has the meaning given in regulation 10 (read with regulation 11);

“recent leaver” has the meaning given in regulation 72 (3);

“reckonable pay” has the meaning given in regulation 15 (read with regulations 16 to 19);

“registered” means registered under Chapter 2 of Part 4 of the Finance Act 2004;

“retail prices index” has the meaning given in section 989 of the Income Tax Act 2007(17);

“safeguarded percentage” has the meaning given by section 64A(3) of the 1993 Act;

“safeguarded rights” has the meaning given by section 64A(1) of the 1993 Act;

“the Scheme” means the Scheme, the rules of which are set out in this Part;

“the Scheme actuary” means the actuary appointed by the Department for the time being to provide a consulting service on actuarial matters relevant to the Scheme;

“scheme year” means a period of one year beginning with 1st April and ending with 31st March next following;

“specialist” means a consultant, other than a nurse consultant, or a senior hospital medical officer or senior hospital dental officer;

“State pension age” means pensionable age, as defined in section 176(1) of the 1993 Act;

“tax year” means a year of assessment for income tax purposes;

“tier 1 ill-health pension” must be read in accordance with regulation 52;

“tier 2 ill-health pension” must be read in accordance with regulation 52;

“trade dispute” has the meaning given in Article 2 (2) of the Jobseekers (Northern Ireland) Order 1995(18);

“whole-time”, in relation to an employment that is comparable to one or more part-time employments, has the meaning given by paragraph (4).

(2) In determining whether a person who is an active member or a pensioner member of the Scheme is also a deferred member of it, the fact that the person is an active member or a pensioner member and the person’s rights as such are to be disregarded.

(3) In determining whether a person is a pensioner member of the Scheme, the fact that the person is not entitled to payment of pension because of Chapter 8 (abatement) is to be disregarded.

(4) For the purposes of this Part—

(a) an employment that is comparable to a part-time employment that is not held concurrently by a person with any other such employment is “whole-time” if it is employment for such number of hours or sessions as in the opinion of the Department amounts to whole-time employment in the case of an employment for services of the kind performed in the part-time employment, and

(b) an employment that is comparable to two or more part-time employments that are held concurrently by a person is “whole-time” if it is employment for such number of hours or sessions as in the opinion of the Department amounts to whole-time employment in the case of an employment for services of the kind performed in the two or more part-time employments.

(1)

S.I. 1972/1265 (N.I. 14)

(2)

1993 c. 49

(3)

S.I. 1995/3213 (N.I. 22)

(4)

S.R. 1995 No. 95, as amended by S.Rs. 1997 Nos. 217 and 390, S.R. 1998 No. 299, S.R. 1999 No. 293, S.R. 2002 No. 69, S.Rs. 2004 Nos. 103 and 104, S.Rs. 2005 Nos. 155, 533, 534 and 565, S.Rs. 2006 Nos 159 and 410 and S.Rs 2008 Nos 96, 130 and 163

(5)

S.I. 1997/1177 (N.I. 7)

(6)

S.I. 1999/3147 (N.I. 11)

(7)

S.I. 2003/1250 as amended by S.I. 2007/3101

(8)

S.R. 2004 No. 156

(9)

1971 c. 80

(10)

S.R. 1993 No. 326

(11)

S.I.1991/194 (N.I. 1); Article 10 was amended by the Health and Personal Social Services (Northern Ireland) Order 1994 (S.I. 1994/429 (N.I. 2)) Article 3(8)

(12)

2004 c. 12

(13)

1992 c. 7

(14)

S.R. 2004 No. 149

(15)

1988 c. 1

(16)

1999 c. 30

(17)

2007 c. 3

(18)

S.I. 1995/2705 (N.I. 15)