OPRA has the power, under section 10 of the Pensions Act 1995, to impose fines for certain breaches of the legislation. It also has the power to recover the penalty. However, if someone refused to pay, and OPRA had to enforce the penalty through the courts, it would currently have to take out a debt action in the courts.
To avoid having to take out a debt action, in England and Wales the County Court rules provide a fast-track system, which the amendment will allow OPRA to use. This means that to enforce an unpaid penalty OPRA will only have to certify the amount of the unpaid penalty to the County Court and file a copy of the penalty. The Court could then issue a court order to allow the penalty to be enforced. In Scotland, OPRA’s order will have the same effect as a sheriff’s decree.
Commentary on Sections Northern Ireland stakeholder pension scheme legislation Schedule 2: Miscellaneous amendments Paragraph 11