Workplace pension scheme membership is at its lowest level since 1997, dropping to 46 per cent.

Statistics published yesterday (February 22^nd) by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show that 83 per cent of public sector employees and 32 per cent of private sector employees had a workplace pension plan in place in 2012.

The proportion of employees with defined benefit occupation pensions continued to fall – with only 28 per cent of employees engaging in this type of scheme in 2012.

A greater proportion of workers from the public sector contributed seven per cent or more to their pensionable earnings in comparison to 2011, accounting for 37 per cent of employees in 2012.

Commenting on the ONS figures, Frances O’Grady, general secretary for the Trades Union Congress, claimed the numbers show a growing divide within the sector.

“Increasingly, workers in trust-based schemes have employer contribution rates above eight per cent, which is essential to build up a decent retirement income,” she said.

“In contrast, a growing proportion of workers in contract-based schemes have employer contributions of less than four per cent. Many people saving into these schemes could find themselves with a low income in retirement, even after years of saving.”

Ms O’Grady went on to claim that the news provides further evidence that strong pension scheme governance and growing saving rates go “hand in hand” and urged more employers to implement trust-based plans.

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Child murderer Subhan Anwar has been killed in Long Lartin Prison.

The 24-year-old – who was convicted of torturing and murdering his partner’s two-year-old daughter in 2009 – died on Thursday (February 14^th) night and two inmates have been arrested over the crime.

A spokesman from West Mercia Police said: “West Mercia Police has launched a murder investigation after a 24-year-old man died in Long Lartin prison last night.

“Two men aged 47 and 45 have been arrested on suspicion of murder and are currently in police custody.”

The Ministry of Justice is working in collaboration with the force to uncover the exact circumstances in which Anwar was killed, although he was reportedly held hostage in a cell before being murdered.

In 2009, Anwar was told he would face a minimum of 23 years in prison for the torture and murder of Sanam Navsarka, which was branded cruelty “beyond belief” by presiding judge Peter Thornton QC.

His partner Zahbeena Navsarka was cleared on murder charges, but faced nine years in jail after being found guilty of manslaughter.

Sanam was found with over 100 separate injuries to her body at the time of her death, inflicted during a month-long campaign of cruelty and abuse.

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The government’s unpaid work schemes have been ruled unlawful following an appeal by a university student who was ordered to work for free at a Poundland store.

Appeal Court judges claimed that the government’s back-to-work programmes breached forced labour laws in cases where individuals were required to work without pay.

Cait Reilly, a university graduate, and Jamieson Wilson, an unemployed HGV driver, were both successful in their cases, in a move that could have wide-ranging implications for the Department of Work and Pension’s back-to-work schemes.

Employment minister Mark Hoban branded the comparison to forced labour “ridiculous” and expressed disappointment in regard to the court’s decision on regulations.

“There needed to be flexibility so we could give people the right support to meet their needs and get them into a job. We do not agree with the court’s judgment and are seeking permission to appeal,” he said.

However, Trade Union Congress general secretary Frances O’Grady claimed the ruling “blows a big hole” in the government’s policies in this area.

“It is pointless to force people to work for no pay in jobs that do nothing to help them while putting others at risk of unemployment. This policy is about blaming the jobless, not helping them,” she said.

Ms O’Grady went on to urge the government to discard this approach and focus on guaranteeing jobs for people in long-term unemployment.

Both Ms Riley and Mr Wilson were warned that they would lose their Jobseeker’s Allowance if they refused to take part in unpaid labour and solicitor Tessa Gregory, who represented the pair, claimed the verdict would send Iain Duncan Smith “back to the drawing board”.

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The National Union of Journalists (NUJ) today revealed that negotiations with bosses at the company had failed and industrial action would take place unless it reconsiders its stance on the job losses.

Michelle Stanistreet, general secretary at the NUJ, unveiled discoveries that indicate BBC Scotland had been advertising jobs externally, while the in-house roles were to be cut.

“The BBC is prepared to waste public money on needless redundancies rather than secure redeployment opportunities for those at risk. This demonstrates the significant failures of some managers to uphold key aspects of the redeployment agreement, let alone the spirit of the deal,” she said.

However, Ms Stanistreet stressed that the NUJ seeks to resolve the issue in “meaningful” negotiations and has planned meetings with managers at the corporation.

The redundancies are being enacted as part of the BBC’s Delivering Quality First programme, which aims to cut more than 2,000 jobs in an effort to reduce costs.

In a letter sent to members of the union at the BBC, Ms Stanistreet outlined a recent victory at the corporation, in which former employee Russell Maddicks won his tribunal case for unfair dismissal.

“Like many other colleagues, Russell was forced out on compulsory redundancy despite there being other jobs and other available opportunities in the BBC. Don’t let the BBC treat other members in the same way,” she said.

Image used courtesy of Gordon Bell / Shutterstock.com.

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Senior members of the Conservative Party have urged their colleagues to back a bill that would allow same-sex marriage.

In an open letter to the Telegraph, chancellor George Osborne, foreign secretary William Hague and home secretary Theresa May claimed that passing the legislation would actively benefit the institution.

“Marriage has evolved over time. We believe that opening it up to same-sex couples will strengthen, not weaken, the institution,” said the letter.

The MPs went on to quote David Cameron’s point that the party should support gay marriage because they are Conservatives, rather than in spite of this fact.

“A substantial majority of the public now favour allowing same-sex couples to marry, and support has increased rapidly. This is the right thing to do at the right time,” they said.

The issue of religious freedom was also addressed, with the authors claiming that the bill would ensure no faith groups are forced to conduct same sex marriages, while those that wish to will no longer be forbidden.

“Attitudes towards gay people have changed. A substantial majority of the public now favour allowing same-sex couples to marry, and support has increased rapidly,” the MPs said.

A vote is scheduled to take place in the House of Commons today (February 5^th), on the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Bill, which would enable same-sex couples to be wed in both religious and civil ceremonies in England and Wales.

Image used courtesy of Ingvar Tjostheim / Shutterstock.com.

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Barry George, who was imprisoned for eight years after being wrongly convicted of murdering TV presenter Jill Dando, has lost his bid for compensation at the High Court.

Two judges at the body dismissed his application for recompense as a victim of a “miscarriage of justice” alongside those of three other individuals.

“In the end, there was no submission formulated by [counsel for Barry George] capable of persuading us that the trial judge was wrong to leave the case to the jury,” the Court said of the case.

It went on to state that Mr George’s claim failed the test that would make him eligible for compensation.

“We are very disappointed with the judgment and we shall be applying for permission to leapfrog the Court of Appeal to have the matter heard before the Supreme Court,” his solicitor Nick Baird said of the ruling.

Mr George’s was one of five test cases brought together to ascertain in what circumstances it is appropriate to award payments to wrongly-convicted individuals.

A landmark ruling from the Supreme Court in 2011 widened the definition of a miscarriage of justice, stating that compensation would only be awarded to those who could prove that no circumstances could result in their conviction by jury.

Jill Dando was murdered on her doorstep in London in 1999 and Mr George was convicted of the crime in 2001.

In 2008, a retrial took place that saw him acquitted of the killing and his original claim for compensation was dismissed in 2010.

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A worker at Stafford Hospital has been suspended after a dummy was found taped to a four-month-old baby’s face.

Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust released has released a statement on the incident, wherein Colin Ovington, director of nursing and midwifery, branded it “exceptional” and apologised to the family involved.

“A member of staff has been suspended pending the outcome of the Police investigation and the Trust’s investigation under our disciplinary policy,” he said.

Mr Ovington went on to state that the organisation has a zero-tolerance approach to lax patient care and claimed that staff feel confident in reporting any lapses in this area.

“We will continue to encourage staff to do this, and will continue to report incidents, even before they have been fully investigated, despite any negative attention this may create,” he added.

News of the incident comes ahead of the findings of a public inquiry into failures at the Trust, scheduled to be published on February 6^th.

In late 2012, it was branded as both financially and clinically unsustainable by a panel of independent experts appointed by regulatory body Monitor.

Stephen Hay, director of the organisation acknowledged that “significant improvements” had been made, but warned that further long-term funding would be required to keep the Trust operating.

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Microsoft has criticised a recent ruling from the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) on Google’s business practices as “weak”.

Speaking about the issue on the company’s blog, vice president and deputy general counsel Dave Heiner described the agency’s failure to obtain industry input on the matter as “troubling”.

He claimed that despite being a vocal advocate of so-called ‘data portability’, Google had in practice prevented its customers from utilising information on their own advertising campaigns with other companies.

“That made it much more difficult and costly for advertisers (especially small advertisers) to run their ad campaigns on Bing and other ad platforms,” Mr Heiner said.

Earlier in the week, the FTC subjected Google to institute legally-binding changes in its presentation of certain search results, in addition to alterations to the administration of its search-based advertising products.

The company was also forced to address issues concerning the way its Motorola Mobility subsidiary licenses its standard-essential patents to the industry and competitors, with regulators calling for “fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory terms” to be implemented.

“The changes Google has agreed to make will ensure that consumers continue to reap the benefits of competition in the online marketplace,” said FTC chairman Jon Leibowitz in his response to the ruling.

However, commenting on the issue, Mr Heiner expressed disappointment in the FTC, noting that the regulator’s proposed consent decree on patents is a lengthy document that lists a number of exceptions to Google’s patent licensing commitments.

Image used courtesy of James M Phelps, Jr / Shutterstock.com.

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