Background and Policy Objectives
3.The Department of Finance and Personnel has authority under the provisions of the Superannuation (Northern Ireland) Order 1972 to make, maintain and amend pension and compensation schemes for Northern Ireland civil servants and other employments listed at Schedule 1 to the Superannuation (Northern Ireland) Order 1972.
4.The Act removes the requirement which currently exists in the Superannuation (Northern Ireland) Order 1972 whereby the Department of Finance and Personnel must secure the consent of trade unions to introduce detrimental changes to the Civil Service Compensation Scheme (Northern Ireland). The Act also introduces new requirements for the Department of Finance and Personnel to report on the consultation it has engaged in with trade unions with the aim of reaching agreement on detrimental changes. Under the new requirement the Department must lay a report before the Assembly describing the consultation processes it has undertaken on proposed changes which would have the effect of reducing the level of compensation payable to civil servants on redundancy.
5.The Superannuation Act 2010 removed the requirement in the Superannuation Act 1972 for trade union consent to detrimental changes to the compensation scheme for the Home Civil Service in Great Britain.