Newsletter Spring 2009

Transcription

1 Newsetter Spring 2009 E L E C T R O N I C D ATA S Y S T E M S P E N S I O N S C H E M E In This Issue We are peased to introduce the Eectronic Data Systems 1994 Pension Scheme (the Scheme) Newsetter, Spring Financia Highights Your Trustee and its Advisors Additiona Vountary Contributions Eary retirement age As usua we have our reguar features such as Member Nominated Trustee Eection summarising some of the Annua Trustee Report and Important information 2009 edition. We generay produce a newsetter annuay, to keep you updated on important matters in connection with your pension arrangement. Accounts, isting the directors of the Trustee, advisors and investment managers and providing you with important contact detais on the back page. In addition, we woud ike to draw your attention to your option to pay AVCs and aso remind you of a Government change to the age at which many individuas wi be abe to retire, but which wi ony impact on a few Scheme members. Finay, we woud ike to highight the opportunity you have if you are an active member of the Scheme to get invoved and become a Trustee Director of the Scheme. Page 6 outines the detais of the Member Nominated Directors, what is invoved and what you need to do if you wish to be considered. EDS 1994 Trustee Limited

2 Financia Highights The foowing is a summary of the most recent audited accounts for the year ended 31 December A copy of the fu report and accounts can be found on the Pensions website or is avaiabe on request from EDS Pensions Administration, see the back page for their contact detais. NB. The audited report and accounts for the year ended 31 December 2008 wi be avaiabe in eary August M The Last Five Years M 2.0M miion Tota fund vaue at 31 December M 2.0M 36.6M TOTAL FUND VALUE at 31 December M year Net new monies Investment growth Tota fund vaue Tota Pensioners Deferreds Active year membership 2

3 Your Trustee and its Advisors The Scheme continues to be managed by a corporate trustee, EDS 1994 Trustee Limited, which operates in the members interests, and has nine trustee directors, whose current composition is as foows: Appointed by the empoyer: Shaun Pooe (Chairman of the Board) Nick Coier Chris Hunt Graham Lay Eected by the active members: Ray Makepeace Jane McCaum Vacancy (see page 6 for detais) Pensioner Director: Derek Grant Independent Director: Independent Trustee Limited (Represented by Ian Pittaway) Advisors: Actuary: Robert Birmingham, Xafinity Consuting Auditor: Ernst & Young LLP Soicitor: Sacker & Partners Investment Consutant: Mercer Investment Managers for the Scheme, excuding AVCs Active UK Equities 25% GMO Majedie RCM Goba Equities 33% AianceBernstein LSV MSF EAFE Equities 22% AXA Rosenberg Baiie Gifford Emerging Markets 8% Genesis Bonds 12% Western Asset Passive Currency - SSgA Investment Managers for AVCs Options Current Managers (1) EDS Passive Base Fund UK Equities 35% BGI Overseas Equities 35% BGI Bonds 30% BGI (2) EDS Active Base Fund UK Equities 42.5% See (5) beow Goba Equities 42.5% See (6) beow Bonds 15% Insight (3) EDS Passive UK Equity Fund UK Equities BGI (4) EDS Passive Overseas Equity Fund Overseas Equities BGI (5) EDS Active UK Equity Fund Vaue 33.3% AianceBernstein Core 33.3% Majedie Growth 33.3% RCM (6) EDS Active Goba Equity Fund Vaue 33.3% AXA Rosenberg Growth/Vaue 33.3% AianceBernstein Growth 33.3% MFS (7) EDS Passive Bond Fund Bonds BGI (8) EDS Cash Fund Deposits and short-term investments BGI With-Profits funds cosed to future contributions: Equitabe Life Prudentia 3

4 Additiona Vountary Contributions (AVCs) How much can I pay? You can pay a your earnings into pensions provision. Athough few wi be abe to afford to pay anything ike this amount, it may be possibe for you to pay a arger amount nearer to the end of your career. Remember that you receive tax reief at the highest rate of your income tax. In addition, you can now take up to 25% of your AVCs as a tax free cash ump sum from the Scheme (renamed as Pension Commencement Lump Sum in the changes to pensions egisation). If you want more information on paying AVCs you shoud contact EDS Pensions Administration (their contact detais are at the back of this newsetter). If you need specific advice on your own financia position you shoud contact an Independent Financia Adviser. Investment Options for AVCs There are 8 fund choices incuding equities (both UK and goba), bonds and cash. There are mixed funds, pus passive and active management choices (see beow for the eight new funds avaiabe, with an indication of their expected risk and return). If you wish to start paying AVCs, further detais are avaiabe from EDS Pensions Administration (see the back of the newsetter for their contact detais) or on the EDS infocentre. The Trustee makes a range of AVC investment options avaiabe to members to enabe them to enhance their retirement benefits from the fund and has recenty made significant changes to these (see beow). 4

5 Eary Retirement Age Summary Funding Statement The Government imposed a change to the minimum retirement age with effect from Apri The change sees the minimum age increasing from age 50 to age 55 with effect from 6 Apri However, members of the Scheme who joined before 6 Apri 2006 continue to have the right to retire at any time after the age of 50 (if competed 2 years quaifying service and given 6 months notice), abeit with a reduced pension. There wi be no change for you. Encosed is a copy of the atest Summary Funding Statement for It shows the updated position from the ast forma vauation, which was 31 December Any person who has joined the Scheme since 6 Apri 2006 wi oose their right to retire from age 50,to be repaced by a right to ony go from age 55 from 6 Apri There may be some exceptions to this if members have been part of a buk transfer from a pension arrangement where they had a protected retirement age of 50. Annua Benefit Statement If you are an active member of the Scheme, you wi have received your annua benefit statement for It wi have incuded a forecast for your State pension as we as your Scheme pension, uness you competed a form opting not to receive this. If you have any queries on your statement you shoud contact EDS Pensions Administration. Their detais are on the back page of this newsetter. 5

6 Do you want to be a Member-Nominated Director? 6 The Requirements EDS 1994 Trustee Limited ( the Trustee Company ) must make arrangements in accordance with Section 241 of the Pensions Act 2004 for at east one-third of the tota number of directors of the Trustee Company to be membernominated directors (MNDs). This was satisfied in 2007, but due to a number of eary retirements a further nomination needs to take pace. How the Scheme Meets the Requirement It has been decided there shoud be nine directors of the Trustee Company: Five directors wi be appointed by the Company, one of these being an independent director who is an individua or body corporate, who satisfies certain requirements of independence from the Company. Three of the MNDs sha be drawn from the active membership of the Scheme. One of the MNDs sha be drawn from the pensioner membership of the Scheme. The seection process for MNDs is subject to the Memorandum and Artices of Association of the Trustee Company. Are you an active member and do you want to get invoved? (the Nomination Process) Any active member of the Scheme may be nominated to stand for seection. Previousy these were drawn from geographica constituencies. This wi not appy for the purpose of this nomination and eection, so a active members wi be invoved in any nomination for an active member MND. Any individua wishing to be nominated must compete a nomination form consenting so to act if seected, by contacting Pau Keerd whose detais are on the back page of this newsetter. Any nomination must be seconded by at east one other member. The person nominated shoud aso understand what is invoved; pease see the artice on page 7 entited The Roe of a Pension Scheme Trustee for a short expanation. The nomination form shoud aso incude a short statement by the nominee (no more than 150 words) expaining why that individua fees they are particuary suited and the attributes that they woud bring to the appointment. The Seection Process If there are no nominations the nomination and seection process wi be repeated approximatey 12 months ater to fi the vacancy. In the interim the Trustee Company sha at its discretion, co-opt a person to fi the vacancy. If there is ony one vaid nomination for any of the MND appointments, that nominee wi be deemed to have been appointed as a MND. In the event that there is more than one vaid nomination, there wi be a baot of the active members of the Scheme. The baot wi be conducted by Eectora Reform Baot Services. Voting wi be based on the first past the post system and the successfu candidate wi be the person with the greatest number of votes. In the event of a tie, the successfu person wi be determined by ot. Duration of appointment as MND Athough the term of the appointment is ordinariy four years, it has been agreed the term of this appointment wi be unti 2011, when the whoe procedure wi be reviewed by the trustee, uness any of the foowing events sha arise: (a) a MNT sha resign by giving one months written notice; or (b) the unanimous decision of a the other directors that the appointment shoud be terminated; or (c) the person sha cease to be in active or pensioner status as reevant for that appointment. Where a vacancy arises, the eigibe person who came next highest in the previous baot sha be appointed for the baance of the term of appointment. If no such person is avaiabe, a fresh nomination and seection process wi be undertaken. I am interested, what do I do now? If you are interested pease contact Pau Keerd at EDS, Wavendon Tower, Ortensia Drive, Miton Keynes, MK17 8LX (e-mai: pau.keerd@eds.com) by 11 May He wi provide you with a nomination pack and further detais regarding what is invoved.

7 The roe of a Pension Scheme Trustee Most occupationa pension schemes in the UK are set up as trusts. There are two main reasons for this: it is necessary in order to gain most tax advantages, and very importanty for the security of the members benefits, it ensures that the assets of the pension scheme are kept separate from those of the empoyer. In respect of the EDS 1994 Pension Scheme ( Scheme ), it is run by a speciay estabished trustee company, EDS 1994 Trustee Limited, and the trustees are therefore appointed as directors of this company. The core duties of a trustee are: to act in accordance with the Trust Deed and Rues, within the framework of the aw; to act prudenty, conscientiousy and honesty and with the utmost good faith; to act in the best interests of a the beneficiaries and to strike a fair baance between the different casses of beneficiaries; to take advice on technica and other matters; to oversee the investment of the assets of the Scheme. The work of a trustee of an occupationa pension scheme is of great importance. The beneficiaries of the Scheme ook to the trustees to make sure that the Scheme is run honesty and we and in their best interests. In addition the Pensions Act 2004 extended the requirement for trustee knowedge, duties and obigations and a trustee is now expected to have an appropriate degree of knowedge and understanding of the aw reating to pensions and trusts, and investment of assets. A trustee must aso be famiiar with the governing trust deed and rues, and the statement of investment principes. Trustees have to put aside persona views on ethica or poitica issues. Furthermore they are not representatives of particuar groups or interests; their duty is to serve a different casses of beneficiary impartiay. The responsibiities and duties of a trustee are however not as daunting as they might at first sound. There are a number of reasons for this. Firsty, duties and responsibiities are shared with eight feow trustee directors who have a variety of expertise and experience and incude one, the independent director, who has no other connection with EDS but is appointed by virtue of his professiona expertise on pension matters. The corporate trustee aso appoints its own professiona advisors, competey independent of the empoyer, incuding a scheme actuary, a scheme auditor, investment advisors and ega advisors. Trustees are aso encouraged to attend appropriate training and wi be given time off from their norma EDS responsibiities to do so. The trustee company normay meets formay four times a year; there is an expectation that trustees wi attend most, if not a, of these meetings. In addition trustees are expected to participate in at east one of the various trustee sub-committees, each of which aso normay meets at east four times a year. Trustees are not however expected or required to be invoved in the day to day running of the Scheme; this responsibiity has been devoved to EDS Pensions Administration at Xafinity Paymaster who work to specific service eves defined by the trustee board and who attend our report to meetings of the board. In tota it can therefore be expected that the commitment as a trustee wi tota, incuding meetings and training, about ten to tweve days a year. 7

8 Important Information Changes in your circumstances Pease remember to advise us if any of your persona detais change. If you are an EDS empoyee it is your responsibiity to ensure that such detais, incuding changes in marita status and/or home address, are correcty recorded on the HR database. If you are a pensioner or deferred member, pease advise EDS Pensions Administration of such changes. Accessing the EDS Pensions website Access to the website is via the EDS intranet and therefore not currenty avaiabe to a members. Pease note that the access route has changed sighty. It can be accessed via the EDS InfoCentre, UK and Ireand home page. Seect Peope Support, then UK & Ireand compensation & benefits, then UK benefits, finay seect Pensions; aternativey you can use the InfoCentre keyword UK Pensions. Nomination form The Trustee has the discretion as to the recipient(s) of ump sum death benefits. This normay ensures that the ump sum wi not be taken into account in the cacuation of Inheritance Tax. It aso means that the payment of the benefits can be made more quicky. You can hep the Trustee in the exercise of their discretion by etting them know how you woud ike the ump sum to be distributed. The Trustee cannot be bound by your wishes but pease be assured that it wi take them into account in its deiberations. It is, therefore, very important that you express your wishes by competing a Nomination Form, and that you compete an updated form as and when your circumstances change, e.g. change of marita status. If you are unsure whether you have competed a form, or whether it is up to date, pease compete the encosed form and pace it in an enveope with your name, Nationa Insurance number, the date, and cear instructions that it shoud ony be opened in the event of your death. You shoud return the form to EDS Pensions Administration (contact detais beow). The date of your ast recorded nomination form, if you have competed one, wi be hed on the administration systems and wi be shown on future benefit statements. EDS Pensions Administration Xafinity Paymaster Sutherand House Russe Way Crawey West Sussex RH10 1UH T F E edspens@xafinitypaymaster.com 8 Pubished by EDS 1994 Trustee Limited If you have any comments on this newsetter or suggestions on what you woud ike to see in future issues, pease write to Pau Keerd at EDS, Wavedon Tower, Ortensia Drive, Miton Keynes, MK17 8LX (e-mai: pau.keerd@eds.com). 532XC(04/09)