Post by Teddy Bear on Jan 14, 2014 21:37:27 GMT
The way the BBC regard the licence fee, soon there will be no money for making programmes, it will all be used to pay themselves for just being there.
I've said it before, I'd love to see them privatised, then we'll see just how generous they'll end up being.
I've said it before, I'd love to see them privatised, then we'll see just how generous they'll end up being.
BBC to pump £740m of licence fee payers' cash into pension scheme deficit
The BBC has decided not to ask its long-serving staff – who, in common with much of the public sector, enjoy guaranteed pension benefits when they retire – for any additional contributions
By Neil Midgley
The BBC is to pump £740 million of licence fee payers’ cash into its pension scheme, to try and close a funding deficit that has nearly doubled over the last three years.
According to a new valuation, the deficit in the BBC pension fund – ie, the value of its assets minus its projected liabilities to retiring staff – has grown from £1.1 billion in 2010 to £2bn in 2013.
However the BBC has decided not to ask its long-serving staff – who, in common with much of the public sector, enjoy guaranteed pension benefits when they retire – for any additional contributions.
As a result, licence-fee payers will be expected to foot the entire bill, at an additional cost of £365million over the next four years.
The amount that the BBC pays to its pension fund over the next four years will increase from an already-agreed £375m to £740m.
That averages out at £185million per year – or roughly twice the annual budget of Radio 4.
It also means that every licence fee payer will be paying roughly £7.36 a year, out of an annual licence fee of £145.50, solely to pay down the BBC’s pension deficit.
John Whittingdale, the Conservative chairman of the House of Commons Culture, Media and Sport Committee, said he was “surprised” by the decision. “At the very least, the pain should be shared between the employer – which in this case ultimately means the licence-fee payer – and the employees,” said Mr Whittingdale.
The decision to force licence-fee payers to pay the entire increase in the pension fund deficit has been made by BBC management, led by the director-general Tony Hall, and agreed with both the supervisory BBC Trust and BBC pension fund trustees.
Mr Whittingdale questioned the role of the BBC Trust, led by chairman Lord Patten of Barnes. He said that both BBC management and the BBC Trust would have questions to answer about the decision, when they next appear before his committee.
Another Tory member of the Culture committee, Philip Davies MP, said that the BBC’s position was “unacceptable” and “unsustainable”.
“It doesn’t bode well for the BBC that they’re shying away from making decisions which may be unpopular with staff – but which are absolutely essential for the viability of their pension scheme,” said Mr Davies.
While costing licence-fee payers dearly, the decision will ward off any conflict with the unions who represent BBC staff – principally the National Union of Journalists and Bectu.
In 2010, the BBC suffered industrial action, including strikes, when it asked staff to accept changes to the pension scheme to help pay down the deficit.
Gerry Morrissey, the general secretary of Bectu, said: “We would not agree a further deterioration in the [BBC pension scheme] benefits. People who have worked for the BBC for a long time have seen their overall remuneration package – pay and pensions – being significantly decreased.”
A BBC management source said that asking employees for further changes to their contributions or benefits would involve a lengthy process involving the agreement of the pension fund trustees, a consultation with the affected staff and the obtaining of independent legal advice.
The source added that about three-quarters of the BBC’s pension liability has accrued to people who are no longer contributing to the scheme, making any new burden on existing employees proportionally greater.
A BBC spokesman said: “We are pleased that by working collaboratively with the Pension Trustees we have finalised the valuation ahead of time, particularly in this economic environment which is challenging for large pension schemes like the BBC’s. By anticipating this valuation result we have agreed a sensible and affordable plan to address the deficit, without adversely affecting programmes or pension scheme members.”
A BBC Trust spokesman said: “External factors have caused the BBC’s pension deficit to increase significantly since 2010 but without recent reforms to staff benefits the BBC would now be facing an even bigger problem. Before approving the BBC’s new funding plan, the Trust considered the various options and set parameters around what would be acceptable given our responsibility to licence fee payers. We concluded that this plan provides the best solution because it addresses the shortfall in an affordable and manageable way.”
The BBC has decided not to ask its long-serving staff – who, in common with much of the public sector, enjoy guaranteed pension benefits when they retire – for any additional contributions
By Neil Midgley
The BBC is to pump £740 million of licence fee payers’ cash into its pension scheme, to try and close a funding deficit that has nearly doubled over the last three years.
According to a new valuation, the deficit in the BBC pension fund – ie, the value of its assets minus its projected liabilities to retiring staff – has grown from £1.1 billion in 2010 to £2bn in 2013.
However the BBC has decided not to ask its long-serving staff – who, in common with much of the public sector, enjoy guaranteed pension benefits when they retire – for any additional contributions.
As a result, licence-fee payers will be expected to foot the entire bill, at an additional cost of £365million over the next four years.
The amount that the BBC pays to its pension fund over the next four years will increase from an already-agreed £375m to £740m.
That averages out at £185million per year – or roughly twice the annual budget of Radio 4.
It also means that every licence fee payer will be paying roughly £7.36 a year, out of an annual licence fee of £145.50, solely to pay down the BBC’s pension deficit.
John Whittingdale, the Conservative chairman of the House of Commons Culture, Media and Sport Committee, said he was “surprised” by the decision. “At the very least, the pain should be shared between the employer – which in this case ultimately means the licence-fee payer – and the employees,” said Mr Whittingdale.
The decision to force licence-fee payers to pay the entire increase in the pension fund deficit has been made by BBC management, led by the director-general Tony Hall, and agreed with both the supervisory BBC Trust and BBC pension fund trustees.
Mr Whittingdale questioned the role of the BBC Trust, led by chairman Lord Patten of Barnes. He said that both BBC management and the BBC Trust would have questions to answer about the decision, when they next appear before his committee.
Another Tory member of the Culture committee, Philip Davies MP, said that the BBC’s position was “unacceptable” and “unsustainable”.
“It doesn’t bode well for the BBC that they’re shying away from making decisions which may be unpopular with staff – but which are absolutely essential for the viability of their pension scheme,” said Mr Davies.
While costing licence-fee payers dearly, the decision will ward off any conflict with the unions who represent BBC staff – principally the National Union of Journalists and Bectu.
In 2010, the BBC suffered industrial action, including strikes, when it asked staff to accept changes to the pension scheme to help pay down the deficit.
Gerry Morrissey, the general secretary of Bectu, said: “We would not agree a further deterioration in the [BBC pension scheme] benefits. People who have worked for the BBC for a long time have seen their overall remuneration package – pay and pensions – being significantly decreased.”
A BBC management source said that asking employees for further changes to their contributions or benefits would involve a lengthy process involving the agreement of the pension fund trustees, a consultation with the affected staff and the obtaining of independent legal advice.
The source added that about three-quarters of the BBC’s pension liability has accrued to people who are no longer contributing to the scheme, making any new burden on existing employees proportionally greater.
A BBC spokesman said: “We are pleased that by working collaboratively with the Pension Trustees we have finalised the valuation ahead of time, particularly in this economic environment which is challenging for large pension schemes like the BBC’s. By anticipating this valuation result we have agreed a sensible and affordable plan to address the deficit, without adversely affecting programmes or pension scheme members.”
A BBC Trust spokesman said: “External factors have caused the BBC’s pension deficit to increase significantly since 2010 but without recent reforms to staff benefits the BBC would now be facing an even bigger problem. Before approving the BBC’s new funding plan, the Trust considered the various options and set parameters around what would be acceptable given our responsibility to licence fee payers. We concluded that this plan provides the best solution because it addresses the shortfall in an affordable and manageable way.”