Following our report last week, the Government has now published the draft Restriction of Public Sector Exit Payments Regulations 2020 (Draft Regulations), introducing a £95,000 cap on exit payments in the public sector.
You can find our previous report on the Government's consultation on these regulations here. Finalised guidance and Treasury Directions are yet to be published and the explanatory memorandum to the Draft Regulations states the Treasury will confirm at a later date when the final version is to come into force.
The explanatory memorandum to the Draft Regulations also provides an interesting breakdown of the value of public sector exit packages and the public funds it is hoped will be conserved through implementation of the cap. In the 2017/18 financial year the total of all public sector exit packages amounted to £900 million. Of that, £200 million was made up of settlement payments of over £100,000. It is expected that when the cap comes in, it will significantly reduce the overall amount spent on exit packages in the public sector, with savings remaining with the employers.
The draft 2020 Regulations in full can be found here.
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