SMEs shouldn't should carry the pension can for giant business, says BCC Magazine

The British Chambers of Commerce have said it’s wrong to produce SMEs carry the pensions deficit burden when larger firms fail.

Dr Adam Marshall, pictured, Acting Director General of the British Chambers of Commerce, said the organisation thought is particularly unfair when there was clearly legitimate queries about corporate decision-making and payouts to shareholders.

“Small, and medium-sized firms complete a substantial contribution towards Pensions Protection Fund with the annual levy. It is unfair for payments to need to rise to fund the deficits in gigantic schemes like that of BHS, and was obviously a potential brake on those levy payers’ future investment and growth.

“Levy-paying firms of any size can be incensed when they found plants carry the can for huge corporate pensions deficits, just months or years after corporate shareholders received huge financial windfalls.”