‘Comprehensive audit’ of NHS pensions announced after error leaves some underpaid

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By Daniel Pye

Some NHS Pension Scheme members have been underpaid because of an administrative error, the government has confirmed.

Health minister Karin Smyth has commissioned a “comprehensive audit” of the scheme after it was found that some members have not been receiving the correct pension amount.

During an update to the House of Commons on the progress of the McCloud remedy, which addresses age discrimination in previous government policy on public sector pensions, Smyth confirmed a “small number of cases” were ongoing.

She told MPs that to ensure all affected members had been properly identified she had asked the government’s Actuary’s Department to lead an audit.

In July, the NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA), which administers the NHS Pension Scheme, reported back to the Department of Health and Social Care that it had found administrative issues in some members’ records – with the earliest dating back to 2008.

Around 95% of members will be unaffected, but those who are will be contacted by the NHSBSA with no action on their part required, Smyth put in her written ministerial statement.