With the Press's consent, you may retire at any time from age 55 to age 60.  If you retire before age 60, your pension will then be reduced to take account of the longer period for which it is going to be paid.

In addition, if your Normal Pension Date is age 65, you may choose to retire at any time from age 60 to 65.    No reduction is made if you retire between 60 and 65.

Your pension is calculated in the same way as for retirement at Normal Pension Date:

1/60th of your Pensionable Salary or Final Pensionable Salary, whichever is the greater, multiplied by your Pensionable Service.

(Please note that if you elected for an enhanced accrual rate, of 30ths, 40ths or 50ths, then the calculation will take this into account.)

If you retire early your pension will then be reduced to take account of the longer period for which it is going to be paid.  (You should note that there may have to be a restriction on the early payment of your benefits from the Scheme. This is because the early retirement pension must be at least sufficient to cover the Guaranteed Minimum Pension.)  

For example, if you retire at age 58, your Final Pensionable Salary is £40,000 and your Pensionable Service is 20 years your pension would be:

1/60 x £40,000 x 20 = £13,333.33 x 0.91 (Early Retirement Factor) = £12,133.33 p.a.

You may choose to give up part of your pension in exchange for a tax-free cash lump sum.  The calculation of your tax-free cash amount is complex, and depends on the amount of your pension at retirement.  You will be provided with further information shortly before you are due to retire.

Your pension will be paid by monthly instalments, in advance on the first of each month, for the rest of your life.  Like your pay, it will be taxable and will be subject to income tax payable through PAYE.  It will be paid directly into your bank/building society account.

There is no limit on the amount which can be saved in registered pension schemes, however benefits worth more than the lifetime allowance will be subject to substantial tax charges.

The lifetime allowance is set each year by the Treasury (£1.8 million for the tax year 2011/12).

The majority of members will not be affected by the lifetime allowance limits.  The current limit of £1.8 million is equivalent to a final salary pension of £90,000 p.a.  To calculate the lifetime allowance value of the Group Scheme Pension, take the value of your pension on retirement, and multiply it by 20.  For example, if your total pension at retirement is £9,500 p.a. multiply by 20 = £190,000.  You may need to adjust this figure if you are entitled to any enhancements or protection on your lifetime allowance.

At each point when benefits come into payment from the Group Pension Scheme, your lifetime allowance will be checked.  You will be asked to provide details to the Pensions Department of any other pension benefits which have either already come into payment, or which will come into payment at the same time as your Group Scheme pension.  If your benefits exceed the lifetime allowance, then any excess which is paid from the Group Pension Scheme will be paid to you as a lump sum, and tax deducted at a rate of 55%.

Your pension will be increased each year after retirement in the following way:

a) Any Guaranteed Minimum Pension earned between April 1988 and April 1997 will increase by 3% p.a. or the rise in inflation, if lower.

b) Your pension earned between April 1997 and March 2005 will increase by 5% p.a. or the rise in inflation, if lower.

c) Your pension earned since April 2005 will increase by 2.5% p.a. or the rise in inflation, if lower

d) Further discretionary increases may be given on your pension but are not guaranteed.

subject to a minimum guaranteed increase of 1% p.a. being paid on the whole of the pension.

However, the Press has stated its intention to review pensions in payment annually with a view to granting discretionary increases on the pension in excess of the GMP, normally in line with inflation, subject to the Scheme having sufficient assets.