The government has introduced a Bill that will maintain the current value of judges’ pensions within their overall remuneration package.
 
The Finance Act 2004 set out a simplified tax regime, to be implemented from April 2006.
 
However, the judicial pension scheme is the only public sector scheme subject to separate primary legislation.

The Bill will introduce the option of Employer Financed Retirement Benefit Schemes for judicial pensions, which will provide the same value of pension benefits judges currently receive, at no overall additional cost to the taxpayer.

The FDA, the union for senior civil servants, sounded a note of caution on the Bill (in the last Parliament) and called on the government to ensure that other public servants are not be penalised through the new tax laws.

"This Treasury-imposed cap, which the FDA did not support, will have an impact on the senior civil service, chief executives in the NHS and many other dedicated professionals. These are not fat cats living high on the hog. These are the people whom the Government has asked to lead public service reform," said a spokesman.