GPs left ‘in limbo’ about their pension due to McCloud remedy recalculation delays
More than 300,000 NHS staff, including GPs, are still waiting for pension recalculations linked to the McCloud remedy, leaving many ‘uncertain’ whether they are receiving the correct payments, experts have warned.
A Freedom of Information request (FOI) submitted by financial mutual Wesleyan to the NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) revealed that of the 303,225 immediate choice members – those who have already retired and are receiving pension benefits – requiring recalculation, 300,062 are still waiting for their pensions to be recalculated.
Experts said that this means 99% are ‘in limbo’, unable to know whether they are receiving the correct pension amount or make informed decisions about their McCloud choice, which could affect both their NHS pension payments and personal pension planning.
Additionally, 296,616 immediate choice members are awaiting Remedial Service Statements – documents that show them how much they would receive under each pension scheme option, allowing them to make an informed choice.
The remedy sought to address age discrimination caused by changes in 2015 to public sector pensions and affects 1.1 million NHS Pension Scheme members in total.
The FOI also revealed lengthy waits for the NHS Pension Scheme’s processing of retirement applications, with GPs facing longer waits than hospital doctors, with average processing times since 2020 of 56 days compared to 45 days.
Madeleine Dowling, technical team lead at Wesleyan, said: ‘These delays are creating genuine financial uncertainty for doctors at all stages. For those who have already retired, there’s the unsettling reality of not knowing whether they’re receiving the correct pension amount.
‘For those still planning retirement, the delays are forcing them to make decisions without accurate information, at a time when workforce pressures are already intense and the NHS can’t afford to lose experienced doctors to preventable administrative delays.
‘We’re seeing clients not able to get the paperwork they need, or when they do, critical information is missing or incorrect. We even know of some people who are having to retire without accurate pension information – an unacceptable situation that’s becoming increasingly common.’
An NHSBSA spokesperson said: ‘Delivering the McCloud remedy is an unprecedented challenge shared across all public sector pension schemes, and every scheme has reported risks to timescales. With almost four million members, the NHS Pension Scheme faces a particular level of complexity.
‘The McCloud remedy is complex and requires activity and calculations for which there is no precedent.
‘Throughout this process, we have been open and transparent with members and with the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC). We are working closely with DHSC to conduct a thorough review and agree an updated delivery plan.’
It comes after Capita said it had recruited a ‘dedicated resolution team’ to fix pension records for GPs affected by the McCloud remedy.
What is the McCloud remedy?
On 1 April 2015, the NHS Pension Scheme (NHSPS) was reformed.
As part of that process, older members who were close to retirement received some protections, meaning they would not be moved into the new reformed scheme.
But a legal case was brought against the Government, arguing that this discriminated against some younger pension scheme members, who did not enjoy the same protections.
In 2018, the Court of Appeal agreed that this amounted to age discrimination.
Following a consultation, the Government came up with a solution, called the McCloud remedy.
Under this, in October 2023, the Government automatically ‘rolled back’ members with no protection from the reforms into their legacy scheme (the 1995/2008 scheme) for the seven-year period to which the remedy applies (2015 to 2022).
On retirement, these members will then have a choice of whether they receive the 1995/2008 scheme or the 2015 scheme benefits for this period.
