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Govt sets sights on DB surpluses following funding improvements


By Sophie Smith

Defined benefit (DB) pension scheme funding levels have hit a record high, with three in four DB schemes now in surplus and deficit payments down by over £10bn a year, analysis from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has revealed.

The DWP suggested that working people, pension scheme members and businesses are all set to benefit from these recent funding improvements, with plans to introduce new freedoms to release surplus funding set to unlock more than £160bn from DB schemes


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Keeping track of the latest pensions dashboards connections

The number of pension providers and schemes that have completed their connection to the pensions dashboards ecosystem has continued to grow. Pensions Age brings you the latest updates...

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'Premature' DB scheme de-risking could cost UK economy 20 years of productive investment, research suggests

'Premature' de-risking of defined benefit (DB) pension schemes may be depriving the UK economy of over 20 years of productive investment, research from New Capital Consensus (NCC) has suggested

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TPR calls for industry collaboration to solve UK’s ‘unfinished’ pension system

The Pensions Regulator (TPR) has called for industry collaboration to tackle the UK’s “unfinished” pension system, as it rolls out new regulatory approaches and support ahead of the delivery of upcoming legislative reforms in the Pension Schemes Bill

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'Unprecedented' number of employers switching to salary sacrifice pensions ahead of NIC hike

The upcoming increase in employer National Insurance contributions (NIC) has sparked a surge of interest in salary sacrifice, with analysis from Penfold revealing that interest in switching to its salary sacrifice pension solution jumped by 800 per cent year-on-year

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Black Brits expect longer retirement and higher pensions despite ethnicity pay gap

Black individuals in the UK expect to enjoy nearly five more years in retirement and receive £8,000 more in annual pension income than the UK average, despite facing a 14.8 per cent ethnicity pay gap, Barnett Waddingham research has revealed

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M&S, SSE and Severn Trent reveal DB funding improvements in annual results

Marks and Spencer Group PLC (M&S), SSE and Severn Trent have published their annual results for the year ending March 2025, revealing funding improvements across their defined benefit (DB) pension schemes

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