Where an offence under this Part committed by a body corporate is proved to have been committed with the consent or connivance of, or to be attributable to any neglect on the part of, a director, manager, secretary or other similar officer of the body, or a person purporting to act in any such capacity, he as well as the body corporate is guilty of the offence and liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly.

Where the affairs of a body corporate are managed by its members, subsection (1) applies in relation to the acts and defaults of a member in connection with his functions of management as to a director of a body corporate.

Where an offence under this Part committed by a Scottish partnership is proved to have been committed with the consent or connivance of, or to be attributable to any neglect on the part of, a partner, he as well as the partnership is guilty of the offence and liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly.

Regulations made by virtue of any provision 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.

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.

Regulations may provide for F6some or all of the provisions of sections 22 F7to 26, and section 117 (so far as it applies to those sections), not to apply in relation to a trust scheme falling within a prescribed class or description.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Before the Secretary of State makes any regulations by virtue of this Part, he must consult such persons as he considers appropriate.

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.

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.

This section 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.

This section does not apply to sections 42 to 46.

Nothing in this Part applies to Her Majesty in Her private capacity (within the meaning of the M1Crown Proceedings Act 1947).

Sections 249 and 435 of the M2Insolvency Act 1986 (connected and associated persons) shall apply for the purposes of the provisions of this Act listed in subsection (3) as they apply for the purposes of that Act.

Section 74 of the M3Bankruptcy (Scotland) Act 1985 (associated persons) shall apply for the purposes of the provisions so listed as it applies for the purposes of that Act.

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 section 47,

• F10“the Authority” means the Pensions Regulator,

• F11“civil partnership status”, in relation to a person, means whether that person has previously formed a civil partnership and, if so, whether that civil partnership has ended,

• “the Compensation Board” has the meaning given by section 78(1),

• “the compensation provisions” has the meaning given by section 81(3),

• “contravention” includes failure to comply,

• “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 F18or category of employment to which the scheme in question relates (but see section 125(3)),

• “equal treatment rule” has the meaning given by section 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,

• “independent trustee” has the meaning given by section 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 F2, pensioner or pension credit member (but see section 125(4)),

• F18. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

• F18. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

• F18. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

• “normal pension age” has the meaning given by section 180 of the M4Pension Schemes Act 1993,

• “payment schedule” has the meaning given by section 87(2),

• F3“pension credit” means a credit under section 29(1)(b) of the Welfare Reform and Pensions Act 1999, or under corresponding Northern Ireland legislation,

• F3“pension credit member”, in relation to an occupational pension scheme, means a person who has rights under the scheme which are attributable (directly or indirectly) to a pension credit,

• F3“pension credit rights”, in relation to an occupational pension scheme, means rights to future benefits under the scheme which are attributable (directly or indirectly) to a pension credit,

• “pensionable service”, in relation to a member of an occupational pension scheme, means service in any description F18or 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 F20... ,

• “prescribed” means prescribed by regulations,

• “professional adviser”, in relation to a scheme, has the meaning given by section 47,

• “public service pension scheme” has the meaning given by section 1 of the Pension Schemes Act 1993,

• “regulations” means regulations made by the Secretary of State,

• “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,

• “Scottish partnership” means a partnership constituted under the law of Scotland,

• “the Taxes Act 1988” means the M5Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1988,

• “transfer credits” means rights allowed to a member under the rules of an occupational pension scheme by reference to F15—

  1. (a)

     a transfer to the scheme of, or transfer payment to the trustees or managers of the scheme in respect of, any of his rights (including transfer credits allowed) under another occupational pension scheme or a personal pension scheme, other than pension credit rights, or

  2. (b)

     a cash transfer sum paid under Chapter 5 of Part 4 of the Pension Schemes Act 1993 (early leavers) in respect of him, to the trustees or managers of the scheme,

• “trustees or managers”, in relation to an occupational pension scheme, means—

  1. a

     in the case of a trust scheme, the trustees of the scheme, and

  2. b

     in any other case, the managers of the scheme,

• “trust scheme” means an occupational pension scheme established under a trust.

In subsection (2)(a), the reference to rights which have accrued to or in respect of the member does not include any rights which are pension credit rights.

In subsection (3B)(b) the reference to the trustees or managers of the scheme shall have effect in relation to any scheme the rules of which provide for a determination that the scheme is to be wound up to be made by persons other than the trustees or managers as including a reference to those other persons.

Subsections (3A) to (3D) above do not apply for such purposes as may be prescribed.

In the application of this Part to Scotland, in relation to conviction on indictment, references to imprisonment are to be read as references to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years.

Subject to the provisions of this Act, expressions used in this Act and in the M6Pension Schemes Act 1993 have the same meaning in this Act as in that.

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.