The Netherlands’ ABP has warned that key conditions for the transfer of politicians’ pensions to the pension fund are still missing and said it did not back the legislative proposal in its current form.

In its response to the draft bill for the General Pensions Act for Political Office Holders (APPA), the pension fund said it supported its objectives but important conditions for a careful transfer of pensions were yet to be sufficiently elaborated.

Under the Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations' (BZK) proposals, the pensions of politicians will be administered by ABP from 2028.

ABP said it was willing to incorporate the pension scheme for political office holders into the ABP pension fund and therefore take over the accrued and in payment pensions.

However, it warned that clear preconditions were necessary to ensure the smooth transfer of the savings.

Among the conditions the pension fund believed had not been sufficiently addressed were the manner in which the collective transfer of value was to take place and the feasibility of the proposed schedule.

It noted that, as these conditions were needed for the careful and controlled transfer of the pensions, it could not support the legislative proposal in its current form.

“We support the objective of the legislative proposal and are keen to implement the pension scheme for political office holders,” ABP stated.

“However, several important conditions need to be better regulated to achieve this. For instance, clear agreements are required regarding responsibilities, the necessary data for the transfer must be in order, and a schedule is needed for all steps in the process.

“ABP remains in dialogue with the BZK regarding this matter and wishes to collaborate on a legislative proposal and project approach that enable a careful transfer.”

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