The Regulator has published a three year corporate plan which outlines those areas it will focus on, with a specific focus on auto enrolment. It has allocated around half of its budget for 2013-14 to activities related to auto-enrolment. The corporate plan identifies five "themes" or aims:
- Reducing risks to DB scheme members, particularly with regard to funding and employer covenants. The Regulator will issue an annual funding statement to set out in advance the expectations of trustees and sponsoring employers in the context of risks presented by current economic conditions, and indicates the Regulator will work with trustees and employers creatively to find appropriate funding solutions. Experience over the past 6 years will inform the Regulator's review of its Code of Practice and guidance in relation to scheme funding, in which the Regulator will also consider the new statutory objective for it to take account of the sustainable growth plan of the sponsoring employer.
- Improving outcomes for DC scheme members. The Regulator aims to employ an "educate, enable and enforce" approach to improve compliance, scheme quality and member outcomes, largely due to the anticipated increase in DC members due to autoenrolment. Improved trustee knowledge and understanding to achieve value for money in schemes will be a focus. The Regulator intends to publish metrics to assist in assessing value for money offered by schemes to enable trustees to engage with advising on this subject.
- Improving governance and administration. Over the next three years the Regulator intends to foster improvement by focussing on educating trustees through the Trustee Toolkit; raising awareness of pension liberation fraud; improving internal controls including recordkeeping and preparing for its new role in public service pensions pursuant to the Public Service Pensions Act 2013. It will contribute to a multiagency project with partners including HMRC and the SFO to tackle pensions liberation fraud, and will be reviewing the trustee knowledge and understanding code of practice to reflect evolving DB and DC strategies.
- Maximising employer compliance with automatic enrolment. Two new codes of practice will be published following the Regulator's 2012 consultation on maintaining auto-enrolment contributions. Those employers, providers and advisers most likely to have difficulties with compliance will be targeted with the "educate, enable and enforce" approach, using guidance, webinars and face-to-face meetings.
- Delivering operational efficiency and effectiveness. The Regulator will be employing nearly one hundred extra staff over the next 12 months to help achieve this, particularly with regard to its auto-enrolment duties and its new responsibility for legacy public sector pension schemes.
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