Deficits

UK Coal shareholders are voting on the final stages of a plan to split the firm in two which would see its underfunded schemes take a controlling stake in one of the new companies.

The majority of financial directors and senior leaders say scheme deficits are hampering their business investments, research shows.

BT has seen its pension deficit rise by 63% in just six months as a result of a reduction in the discount rate used for its IAS19 valuation.

Debenhams will contribute £8.9m per year until 2022 in order to return its two funds to a fully funded position.

The government risks damaging the UK economy by refusing to give businesses more flexibility on how they calculate scheme deficits, warns the National Association of Pension Funds.

A small spike in gilt yields brought liabilities down by 3.6% in September and helped deficits improve by £51bn, according to the Pension Protection Fund 7800 Index.

The Pensions Regulator has reiterated its stance that most firms currently agreeing funding valuations will not need to significantly increase deficit recovery contributions.

Research from Hymans Robertson shows that IAS19 deficits rose from £67bn to £115bn for FTSE350 companies in the year up to July 2012.

FTSE350 scheme deficits have remained virtually unchanged since 2002 while FTSE100 longevity assumptions have increased for the sixth year running, Mercer says.

RM intends to more than double deficit contributions to its defined benefit scheme after closing it to future accrual later this year.