Pensions in Black

Budfrog · Post by **Budfrog** » 01 Oct 2007, 13:04

From Daily Mail - October 1st

CONSULTANTS Aon reveal that UK pension schemes are back in the black despite the credit crisis. The aggregate funding levels of the largest 200 UK funds is up 2pc from a Â£10bn deficit at the end of August to a Â£5bn surplus at the end of September.

Post by **the beautiful bd south** » 01 Oct 2007, 14:01

except ours ffs....

DGP1 · Post by **DGP1** » 01 Oct 2007, 14:43

Pensions go up and down everyday, only at intervals do they actually apprise them (of course RM taking a massive pension holiday and GB stealing from pension funds don't help)

Carla · Post by **Carla** » 02 Oct 2007, 13:41

If everybody reported RM to the FSA or something maybe they will get investigated for daylight robbery cause they two theivings bastards are nothing but f***ing robbers :cfo :lfo

robd · Post by **robd** » 02 Oct 2007, 18:56

in fairness,they inherited the problem,a bit like blaming Gordon Brown for the poll tax.
But i agree,there should be a full and impartial enquiry.

Post by **Carnoustie** » 02 Oct 2007, 19:20

disgruntledpostie1 wrote:Pensions go up and down everyday, only at intervals do they actually apprise them (of course RM taking a massive pension holiday and GB stealing from pension funds don't help)

The way I see it, the actuaries (number crunchers) of any pension scheme are asked to put figures on the potential future value of the fund, and calculate whether there might be a shortfall in the funds required to continue to pay out all pensions to retirees.

When doing this, they have to make huge assumptions about how many people will be contributing to the scheme, how many people will remain in continuous employment until their retirement date (and thus draw a full pension), how many people will die in service

and most importantly, how the underlying assets of the fund will perform in terms of growth in share prices, returns from fixed investments etc etc. They can only use past performance as a guide - there are no certainties. Markets can rise just as easily as they can fall.

Isn't their job something akin to a journalist trying to predict the finishing position of a mid-table Premiership team, when he doesn't know which players will be sold / signed in the transfer window, how many players will pick up injuries or suspensions, and whether the chairman and director of football might have their contracts terminated ????

That often-quoted Â£3.4billion defecit is, in my opinion, the worst-case-scenario potential defecit. It does not exist yet, and may never get that bad, yet Royal Mail are using this scary figure as an excuse to justify closing our final-salary scheme

ANOTHER REASON TO BACK THE STRIKES 100%