We are responsible for regulating defined benefit, master trusts or broader defined contribution schemes and public service pension schemes. We are also responsible for ensuring that employers comply with their automatic enrolment duties.
This report details the information provided to us by people with concerns about the entities that we regulate.
As a 'prescribed person', The Pensions Regulator (TPR) is legally required to report on the whistleblowing disclosures we receive from certain workers. Reports from whistleblowers, savers and our regulated community are vital to ensure that we protect savers' money.
Under the Prescribed Persons (Reports on Disclosure of Information) Regulations 2017 we must report the following information every year:
- the number of disclosures we received (which met certain criteria)
- the number of those disclosures where we decided to take further action
- a summary of the action we took in relation to the disclosures
- a summary of how workers' disclosures have impacted our ability to perform our functions and meet our objectives
- an explanation of our functions and objectives
Number of disclosures 2023 to 2024
Between 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024 we received nine qualifying disclosures, as defined in the Public Interest and Disclosure Act 1998 and our whistleblowing policy, which fell within the remit of our statutory functions and objectives.
Number of disclosures and summary of actions
All reports from savers, whether they be qualifying disclosures or otherwise, are reviewed and we will investigate the concerns raised if we think there is a cause to do so. In instances where we do not take further action, the information is used to support the intelligence picture on our regulated entities.
We took further action in relation to seven of the qualifying disclosures. Of the reports where no action was taken, one was used to enhance our intelligence picture on an entity and the other fell into the remit of another 'prescribed person'.
In the instances where we took further action, we used the information to support our supervisory work and engagement with pension schemes or investigate an employer’s compliance with their automatic enrolment duties.
The action we take is consistent with the principles set out in the Regulator’s Code. We are a risk-based regulator that must carry out our activities in a way which is proportionate, accountable, consistent, transparent and targeted. In this context, whistleblowing disclosures help us to inform our intelligence and enforcement action and take action where we see it as appropriate.
How disclosures impact on our objectives
All actions taken, either as a result of a disclosure or informed by a disclosure, contribute towards the achievement of our objectives.