Directors’ pension arrangements

Executive directors are entitled to a pension of two-thirds of basic salary on retirement from Reuters at the normal retirement age of 60. Post-retirement increases are expected to be in line with inflation (guaranteed up to the level of 5% and discretionary above that level).

In the event of death before retirement, a spouse’s pension of four-ninths of the executive’s basic salary is payable, together with a capital sum equal to four times the aggregate of basic salary and taxable health and car benefits and a refund with interest of the executive director’s own contributions. On death in retirement, the executive director’s spouse will receive a pension equal to two-thirds of that payable to the executive director. In addition, on death within the first five years of retirement, a lump sum is payable equal to the balance outstanding of the first five years’ pension instalments.

Provision for the above benefits is made through the Reuters Pension Fund, a contributory plan, the Reuters Supplementary Pension Scheme, a non-contributory plan, and in the case of Jean-Claude Marchand, a Swiss pension plan, also a contributory plan. None of the executive directors has pension arrangements that are subject to the Inland Revenue earnings cap.

Pension contributions paid by the company in respect of the six executive directors participating in the plans are assessed according to long-term funding arrangements and are expressed as an average contribution rate, which for 1998 was 21.025%, of basic salaries.

Under an unfunded pension arrangement the Chairman is entitled to a pension of 2.5% of his annual fee times the number of years of service, from the date of his appointment as Chairman in May 1985 to the date his office terminates. In addition the Chairman has been admitted as a member of the Reuters Pension Fund for the purpose only of providing a fixed lump sum benefit of £300,000 for his dependants in the event of his death in service.

Pensions benefits earned by directors are as follows:

	At 31 December 1998			Accrued pension entitlement
			Directors’		Total at
			contributions	Increase	31 December
		Years of	during year	during year	1998
	Age	service	£000	£000	£000
Sir Christopher Hogg	62	13	–	5	66
P Job	57	34	31	3	348
J-C Marchand	52	27	24	8	188
J M C Parcell	52	29	15	6	130
R O Rowley	49	20	19	9	131
D G Ure	51	30	20	8	170
A-F H Villeneuve	54	31	20	9	184
The accrued pension entitlement shown is that which would be paid annually, commencing at normal retirement age, based on service to 31 December 1998. The increase in accrued pension during 1998 excludes any increase for inflation. Neither the contributions nor the accrued entitlement reflect any additional voluntary contributions made by the directors.