Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Pensions

United Kingdom
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Pensions
United Kingdom; Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Pensions
	Royal Arms of His Majesty's Government
	Incumbent; Torsten Bell; since 14 January 2025
	His Majesty's Treasury; Department for Work and Pensions
Style	Minister
Nominator	Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
Appointer	The Monarch; on advice of the Prime Minister;
Term length	At His Majesty's pleasure;
Website	www.gov.uk/government/ministers/parliamentary-secretary--13

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Pensions or Pensions Minister a junior position held jointly in His Majesty's Treasury and the Department for Work and Pensions in the British government.

Responsibilities

The minister's responsibilities include:

Pensioner benefits, including new State Pension, Winter Fuel Payments, Pension Credit and Attendance Allowance
Private and occupational pensions, including regulatory powers and the National Employment Savings Trust (NEST)
Automatic enrolment into a workplace pension
Oversight of arm's-length bodies, including the Pensions Regulator, Pension Protection Fund, Financial Assistance Scheme and Pensions Ombudsman
Financial guidance, budgeting, saving and debt, including the Money and Pensions Service and Financial Inclusion Policy Forum
Methods of payment and Post Office Card Accounts
EU Exit preparation relevant to pensions
Cross-DWP spokesperson – shadowing Lords

List of ministers

Name		Entered office	Left office	Political party	Prime Minister
Under-Secretary of State, Health and Social Security
	Lynda Chalker	7 May 1979	5 March 1982	Conservative	Margaret Thatcher
	Tony Newton	5 March 1982	11 September 1984
	Ray Whitney	11 September 1984	10 September 1986
	Nicholas Lyell	10 September 1986	13 June 1987
	Michael Portillo	13 June 1987	25 July 1988
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Social Security
	Peter Lloyd	25 July 1988	28 July 1989	Conservative	Margaret Thatcher
	Gillian Shephard	25 July 1989	28 November 1990		Margaret Thatcher
	Michael Jack	28 November 1990	14 April 1992		John Major
	Ann Widdecombe	30 November 1990	27 May 1993
	Alistair Burt	14 April 1992	6 July 1995
	William Hague	27 May 1993	20 July 1994
	James Arbuthnot	20 July 1994	6 July 1995
	Roger Evans	20 July 1994	2 May 1997
	Andrew Mitchell	6 July 1995	2 May 1997
	Oliver Heald	6 July 1995	2 May 1997
Minister of State for Social Security with special responsibility for War Pensions
	John MacKay, Baron MacKay of Ardbrecknish	5 July 1995	4 May 1997	Conservative	John Major
Minister of State for Pensions
	John Denham	1 May 1997	30 December 1998	Labour	Tony Blair
	Stephen Timms	23 December 1998	29 July 1999
	Jeff Rooker	29 July 1999	7 June 2001
	Malcolm Wicks	8 June 2001	4 April 2003
	Ian McCartney	13 June 2003	6 May 2005
	Stephen Timms	6 May 2005	5 May 2006
	James Purnell	5 May 2006	28 June 2007
	Mike O'Brien	27 June 2007	5 October 2008		Gordon Brown
	Rosie Winterton	24 January 2008	5 June 2009		Gordon Brown
Minister of State for Pensions and Ageing Society
	Angela Eagle	8 June 2009	11 May 2010	Labour	Gordon Brown
Minister of State for Pensions
	Steve Webb	12 May 2010	8 May 2015	Liberal Democrats	David Cameron
	Ros Altmann, Baroness Altmann	11 May 2015	15 July 2016	Conservative	David Cameron
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Pensions
	Richard Harrington	17 July 2016	14 June 2017	Conservative	Theresa May
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Pensions and Financial Inclusion
	Guy Opperman	14 June 2017	8 September 2022	Conservative	Theresa May Boris Johnson
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Pensions and Growth
	Alex Burghart	20 September 2022	27 October 2022	Conservative	Liz Truss
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Pensions
	Laura Trott	27 October 2022	13 November 2023	Conservative	Rishi Sunak
	Paul Maynard	13 November 2023	5 July 2024	Conservative	Rishi Sunak
	Emma Reynolds	9 July 2024	14 January 2025	Labour	Keir Starmer
	Torsten Bell	14 January 2025	Incumbent		Keir Starmer
	Torsten Bell	14 January 2025	Incumbent		Andy Burnham

Notes

↑ Office vacant between 7 July and 8 July 2022, when Opperman resigned from the government until Boris Johnson announced his resignation as prime minister.

References

↑ "Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Minister for Pensions and Financial Inclusion)". GOV.UK. Retrieved 10 January 2021.
↑ Blows, Laura. "Guy Opperman announces return to DWP". Pensions Age Magazine. Retrieved 9 July 2022.

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[fna-3] Office vacant between 7 July and 8 July 2022, when Opperman resigned from the government until Boris Johnson announced his resignation as prime minister.

[gov.uk-1] "Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Minister for Pensions and Financial Inclusion)". GOV.UK. Retrieved 10 January 2021.

[2] Blows, Laura. "Guy Opperman announces return to DWP". Pensions Age Magazine. Retrieved 9 July 2022.

United Kingdom Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Pensions
Royal Arms of His Majesty's Government
Incumbent Torsten Bell since 14 January 2025
His Majesty's Treasury Department for Work and Pensions
Style	Minister
Nominator	Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
Appointer	The Monarch on advice of the Prime Minister
Term length	At His Majesty's pleasure
Website	www.gov.uk/government/ministers/parliamentary-secretary--13