B

Baroness Neville-Rolfe (Con)

Speaking in the House of Lords on 19 March 2026

Debate

Pension Schemes Bill

Contribution

My Lords, I support Amendment 105A and the proposed new clause in the name of my noble friend Lady Noakes, to which I added my name. It is essential, in my view, to require the regulations to be pro-innovation and pro-competition rather than over-exclusionary. The £25 billion minimum provided for in the Government’s reforms seems set to deter innovation. My noble friend Lady Noakes has explained the case and the reach of our proposal very well, so I will not speak at length. I was a trustee of the pension fund at Tesco, which at the time was worth less than £25 billion. We were innovative: we invested in private equity, including US private equity, when others did not, and we had part of our portfolio in housing—just the sort of innovation that the Chancellor is seeking to encourage. However, today that would not be seen as innovation. I am sure that my successors are looking at today’s innovative investments: fintech, quantum, space, rare earths, new types of weapons and other types of disruptive innovation. I have also been struck by the arrival in the pensions market of online-only operators. They started small, made good returns and are a growing part of the market.

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