Ascon trustees 'broke Pension law'

Four trustees of one of construction firm Ascon's pension funds breached three parts of the Pensions Act in 2002, according to a Circuit Court ruling delivered last week.

The court found that the four trustees, who included Ascon's managing director Brendan Barrett, had failed to produce a number of documents and then make them available on time to members of the Ascon Limited Pension and Life Assurance scheme. The breaches related to the year ending March 31st, 2002, with the documents not produced including the annual report for that year. It is thought the information was lodged two months late.

Judge Doirbhile Flanagan in the Dublin Circuit Court applied the Probation Act to Mr Barrett along with Brian Fitzpatrick, Ascon's financial controller, Leo Harmon, another company director and Anthony Hussey, the firm's solicitor.

A spokesman for Ascon said yesterday that the pension scheme concerned was now "fully compliant with the Pensions Act, fully funded and in good standing".

He said the company regretted the "minor technical breach", adding that it had occurred because Ascon had relied upon the professional advice of its advisers, Aon and Ernst & Young.

A spokesman for Ernst & Young said the company could not comment on a client relationship, while nobody from Aon was available to comment yesterday.

In 2005 Mr Barrett, Mr Fitzpatrick, Mr Harmon and Mr Hussey were found in the District Court to have breached four aspects of the Pensions Act. They then appealed this to the Circuit Court, where Judge Flanagan applied the Probation Act in respect of three offences but said the fourth had been taken outside of specified time limits.

The court affirmed cost orders of €2,400 that had been imposed on each of the four trustees by the District Court and awarded further costs against them in respect of the appeal. The original prosecution had been taken by the Pensions Board, the statutory body that regulates occupational pension schemes.

The Ascon scheme that was the subject of the case was, in 2002, a defined benefit scheme worth just less than €30 million. At the time, it had just shy of 450 members, most of whom were clerical staff at the company.