Lord Palmer of Childs Hill (LD)

My Lords, I thank the Minister for explaining things in great detail from the Government’s perspective. I will speak to Motion B1, which the Minister said has already been met. The Local Government Pension Scheme already has mechanisms to review and amend employer pension contributions and funding practices; for instance, under Regulation 64A of the Local Government Pension Scheme Regulations 2013. There is even an existing GAD reporting mechanism under the Public Service Pensions Act 2013, which reports on compliance, consistency, solvency and long-term cost efficiency, with such reports having been carried out in 2018, 2019 and 2024. Therefore, we on these Benches think that the Government’s efforts should be focused—as they are, I think—more on implementing the recommendations of those reports, rather than duplicating efforts. We will probably abstain on Motion B1; we recognise its importance but think it is already being met. Motion C is a government Motion, so I come to Motion D. Amendment 13 would extend the period before a pension pot is classified as dormant, increasing the threshold from one year to three years. We supported this increase earlier in the passage of the Bill, as it would provide greater flexibility for savers such as mothers, those on sabbatical or mature students. Motion D1, from the noble Baroness, Lady Altmann—