According to the work and pensions committee’s paper, key responsibilities for the three regulators include:
| • The Pensions Regulator has responsibility for regulating the running and management of all workplace schemes, monitoring scheme administration, scheme funding, employer compliance and investigating fraud. |
| • The Financial Conduct Authority has responsibility for conduct in retail and financial markets and the prudential regulations of firms who do not fall under the Prudential Regulation Authority’s scope. |
| • Bank of England subsidiary the PRA is responsible for regulating large insurance firms, ensuring safety and capital liquidity, including contract-based workplace pension providers. |
Industry bodies that raised concerns on the current workplace pension regulatory framework included the Association of British Insurers which said fear of ambiguities could see regulators apply different standards or duplicate work.
Age UK was concerned about the ‘regulatory gap’ with the FCA and PRA largely regulating contract-based schemes and The Pensions Regulator overseeing trust-based schemes, leading to a lack of consistency for consumers.
The National Audit Office noted that the relationship between the three regulators had no overarching objectives or common framework for making evidence-based assessments of risks to members, leading to a lack of accountability.
