On 9 September 2011, the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) published a consultation paper setting out its proposals to increase the level of employee contribution rates in the Firefighters' Pension Scheme and New Firefighters' Pension Scheme for the financial year 2012/13.
The consultation sought views on the following key proposed changes to the firefighters’ pension schemes in England:
- Increased levels of employee contribution rates, effective from 1 April 2012
- The introduction of tiered contribution levels, so that high earners pay a higher rate of contribution
- Different levels of increase for the Firefighters’ Pension Scheme (1992) and New Firefighters’ Pension Scheme (2006)
- The specific handling of contributions for retained and part-time firefighters.
The consultation closed on 2 December 2011.
Having considered the responses and evidence received including representations made in ongoing discussions with trade unions and employers, the Department has today (29 March) published its response to the consultation.
The end result is that the contribution increase for RDS employees whose role is below that of a Watch Manager/Commander, the increase in pension contributions will be 0.3% resulting in a total annual rate of 8.8%.
The rate increase for Watch Managers/Commanders will be 0.4% resulting in a total annual rate of 8.9%.
The increase is half of that originally proposed.
| Pensionable pay band (Wholetime equivalent rate) | Proposed increase (%) | Actual increase after consultation (%) | Annual rate (%) |
| Upto and including £15,000 pa (gross) | 0 | 0 | 8.5 |
| £15,001 – £30,000 | 0.6 | 0.3 | 8.8 |
| £30,001 – £40,000 | 0.8 | 0.4 | 8.9 |
This announcement is only applicable to NFPS members in England, as soon as we have further information for Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales we will update members via our website.
March 29, 2012
News, Pensions