Pensions Bill

moved AmendmentNo. 36: 36: Schedule 1, page 31, leave out lines 29 to 32 and insert— ““(a) in paragraph 5 (Category A or B retirement pension) for the figure in column (3) (increase for adult dependant) substitute ““—””; (b) in paragraph 6 (Category C retirement pension) for the figure in column (3) (increase for adult dependant) substitute ““—””.”” The noble Lord said: I shall speak also to Amendments Nos. 37 and 145. These are three straightforward corrections to the drafting of the Bill. On Amendment No. 36, Part 4 of Schedule 1 provides for the consequential amendments to the abolition of adult dependency increases in category A and category C retirement pensions. At present, paragraph 18 in Part 4 of Schedule 1 refers to the amounts which were payable at the time that the Bill was introduced into Parliament in 2006. These amounts have since changed, meaning that paragraph 18 is now obsolete. The intention now is to make the consequential amendment by reference to the specific item in the Schedule to the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992, rather than to continue to quote the amounts payable. This will ensure that the proposed changes will be able to come into effect from April 2010. On Amendment No. 37, part 5 of Schedule 1 contains consequential and related amendments that fall from the new earnings uprating provisions of Clause 5. Paragraph 27 concerns amendments to Section 159C of the Social Security Administration Act 1992, which allows for the amount of an unemployment and support allowance to be recalculated when benefits are uprated without the need for a further decision. The amendments at paragraph 27 ensure that this will also apply where that calculation takes account of amounts which are earnings uprated under new Section 150A, as well as those which are prices uprated under Section 150. However, we have subsequently identified that a further small change is required to Section 159C to insert a further reference to new Section 150A. Therefore, this government amendment does exactly that. Finally, Amendment No. 145 simply tidies up previous legislation to reflect the new arrangements for the state second pension introduced in this Bill. These new arrangements, which are introduced at Clauses 10 to 12, will greatly simplify the state second pension and slowly erode its earnings-related element as recommended by the Pensions Commission. This amendment concerns that part of the Child Support, Pensions and Social Security Act 2000 which describes how inherited state second pension is calculated when someone in receipt of bereavement allowance reaches state pension age. The particular legislation at issue here is that which modifies the number of years of a working life. Following the introduction of the flat and fixed rate amount of state second pension, which is a key part of the simplification we are proposing, the reference to the number of years in a working life becomes redundant. Schedule 7 lists the repeals and revocations necessary to make the new legislation operate effectively. Part 4 lists the repeals required to make the simplified accrual rate in state second pension work. This amendment includes a further reference which was overlooked at the first stage of the Bill. I beg to move. On Question, amendment agreed to.