Tag Archives: USS

USS Pensions: Time for Agreement ; Michael Bromwich

Posted on August 12, 2022 by henry tapper

The 2020 valuation of this Scheme with a deficit of £14bn led to sweeping cuts in benefits and a substantial strengthening of the financial backing (additional covenant support) provided by employers to the revised Scheme which commenced on 1 April … Continue reading →

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USS disclosure- in need of a “deus ex machina”.

Posted on June 20, 2022 by henry tapper

  Reading the latest acrimonious exchanges between the University Employers and the staff union UCU is a depressing business. UUK, who say they are taking their lead from the  USS pension scheme stand accused of underestimating the scale of the … Continue reading →

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The reckless prudence of DB funding is immoral.

Posted on June 1, 2022 by henry tapper

There are obviously complications and nuances with any pension scheme. But the fact that an erroneous, ill-timed valuation made #USS benefits unaffordable due to unnecessary deficit recovery payments is as black-and-white as any matter of pensions can get https://t.co/H7RJnnObXS — … Continue reading →

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Guess what! USS isn’t bust any more!

Posted on May 31, 2022 by henry tapper

To no great surprise for readers of this blog, the notional deficit on the USS pension scheme has all but gone away , at least according to an interim valuation of assets and liabilities in March this year. In two … Continue reading →

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Cumbo calls into question pension transparency.

Posted on May 18, 2022 by henry tapper

Case study – the pertinent question on DB funding. For this story, I spoke to an 86yr-old who worries everyday about how his wife, 9 yrs younger, will cope financially if he dies before her. He receives NO inflation rises … Continue reading →

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Fair’s fair, will employers share their good news on DB with staff?

Posted on March 26, 2022 by henry tapper

There’s more to this question than meets the eye. DB in run-off is likely to become less expensive to sponsors as inflation and interest rates increase. This should feed through to lower funding which might feed through into more equitable … Continue reading →

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Woon Wong’s letter to TPR on USS’ deficit

Posted on December 14, 2021 by henry tapper

At a recent pension conference, Woon Wong mentioned a letter sent to David Fairs which would be posted on my blog. This is the letter and I am proud to openly publish it. At the conference were a number of … Continue reading →

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A USS CDC scheme “makes sense” – says the FT’s Martin Wolf

Posted on November 15, 2021 by henry tapper

UK university pensions suffer from misplaced prudence https://t.co/F7woRK31aL @martinwolf_ calls for the USS to consider risk-sharing through CDC rather than insuring uninsurable risks. — Henry Tapper (@henryhtapper) November 15, 2021 This is the first time I have seen a mainstream … Continue reading →

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The cost of guarantee and trust deficit in the USS- Woon Wong

Posted on November 11, 2021 by henry tapper

  This blog from Woon Wong is a very welcome addition to the  evidence that USS is architect of the predicament it finds itself in. Despite a short balloting period, staff of 37 universities voted for strike action over changes … Continue reading →

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Sam Marsh tweets about the (non-existent) 2021 USS valuation

Posted on September 10, 2021 by henry tapper

Sometimes twitter throws up a thread that draws you from tweet to tweet in a way that a long blog can’t. This thread from Sam Marsh is an example. It is an exercise in controlled fury at the ineptitude of … Continue reading →

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