The NUM welcome the announcement by Rachel Reeves MP, Chancelor of the Exchequer, in the budget to release the £2.3billion in the BCSSS Investment Fund to the Trustees to be used to improve pensions.
It was accepted by the Labour Party in the National Policy Forum Report that no Government should profit from the Miners’ Pension Schemes. In their manifesto they committed to right this historic injustice for the MPS and it was accepted that this would include the BCSSS.
Today the Labour Government have fulfilled their commitment to relinquish any claim that the Government has on Scheme assets and leave them in the Scheme to be used to improve pensions.
There is still work to do to resolve the Surplus Sharing arrangements and ongoing Government guarantee for both the MPS and BCSSS which the NUM will continue to pursue with Government Ministers.
Improvements in the Pension Protection Fund (PPF) to give increases on pre 1997 pension will benefit former employees of UK Coal and Scottish Coal who were transferred to the PPF.