NETHERLANDS - Dutch insurers have voiced their opposition to the mandatory participation of company pension schemes in industry-wide pension funds.

“Mandatory shopping doesn’t go together with a more liberated pensions market,” said Richard Weurding, director of the Dutch Association of Insurers, in the daily Het Financieele Dagblad.

The association, or VvV, is already anticipating discussing the future governing model of the pension funds with the government next week.

“The cabinet want pension schemes to contract out their asset management and administration to the market, or split them off,” it says.

“This will mean that large pension funds, like civil service scheme ABP and health care scheme PGGM, can put their management companies onto the market”.

The VvV fears unfair competition from these ‘government-sponsored’ players, Weurding indicated.

In the VvV’s opinion, more freedom for pension funds is only acceptable if the insurers get equal access to the pensions market.

“If PGGM is allowed onto the market, then hospitals should be allowed to detach themselves from the scheme and join an insurer,” the director explained.

“Either the pension market will be liberated, but without the mandatory participation in industry-wide schemes, or the mandatory participation stays in place, but with the pension funds staying within their own fence.”

“We think the government shouldn’t make these decisions in a hurry. It should thoroughly look at all the aspects like, for example, the principle of solidarity. There is a risk that the baby will be thrown out with the bath-water,” VvV spokesman Henny Zoontjes added.

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