Government 'scrapes by' on pensions bill vote
The government has won the recent vote in the House of Commons on its pensions bill, with the amendments presented by a cross-party group defeated by 22 votes.
Independent policy advisor Dr Ros Altman expressed her regret that the resolution to the "dreadful scandal" of victims of failed company pension schemes was not reached, despite the efforts of some Labour backbenchers along with Conservative and Liberal Democrat MPs.
Dr Altman said: "The amendments would have permitted trustees to pay out to all those already past scheme pension age straight away, without waiting for the Financial Assistance Scheme bureaucracy to work."
"This is what happens to members of schemes in the Pension Protection Fund."
She added his hopes that the pensions bill would be voted down in the House of Lords, with the cross-party amendments introduced to press for a "fair" solution.
Liberal Democrat spokesperson on work and pensions David Laws recently described the government as guilty of maladministration in its provision of compensation for members of failed company pension schemes.
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