Union leaders have reacted angrily to reports that the government is considering reassessing the civil service pension agreement.
A paper leaked at the weekend stated that civil servants could be made to contribute more to their pension scheme. Employer contributions should be capped at 20% and civil servants should pay half the costs of any future increases, the paper said.
Mark Serwotka, general secretary of the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS), said he was dismayed by the news.
“For a government that repeatedly talks about trust in politicians to even think about reneging on an agreed deal is unbelievable. If the leaks are correct the government can expect a robust response from PCS to what will be a deeply unpopular decision,” he said.
Unions are due to meet Cabinet Office officials tomorrow to discuss pension proposals.
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The Cabinet Office said that it was standing by the deal reached last year by the former industry secretary, Alan Johnson.
“There are scheme-specific issues to be addressed. The process has already been successful with the teaching unions and further negotiations are to take place with the health service and civil service unions,” it said.
