Introduction

The Board for Actuarial Standards (BAS) was set up in April 2006 as an operating board of the Financial Reporting Council (FRC). It is responsible for setting technical actuarial standards in the UK, with the Profession continuing to produce ethical standards. More information can be found on the BAS website.

BAS is developing a conceptual framework for technical standards and will produce actuarial technical standards in a new way. Initially they have adopted the majority of guidance notes (GNs) produced by the Profession, even where these contain a mixture of technical and ethical material. There are a few non-technical and (for various reasons) one or two technical GNs which will remain with the Profession. Actuaries are required to continue to comply with the same guidance notes that they were required to before the change. Changes to the Profession’s disciplinary schemes will enforce the new requirement to follow appropriate BAS standards in addition to the requirements of the Professional Conduct Standards (PCS).

Handover of Guidance Notes to BAS

The effective time/date of handover to the BAS was midnight between 18 May and 19 May 2006. On 19 May all relevant current Guidance Notes (but see following paragraph) were adopted by BAS and appear as such on the BAS web site. The Guidance Notes previously published by the Profession remain on the Profession’s website as a historical record.

At the date of handover, the Profession was required to retain the responsibility for GNs 11, 19, 27, 28, 49 and 51 and a Technical Memorandum (TM1) whilst the DWP made arrangements for changes to be made to the relevant references in legislation. The necessay amending legislation has now been passed, and all of the above-mentioned GNs (with the exception of GN27) and TM1 were handed over to the BAS on 6 April 2007. GN27 will remain with the Profession because the relevant legisation has been repealed and therefore cannot be changed.

GNs are currently classified as either Practice Standard or Recommended Practice. This differential status has been retained by the BAS.

In adopting Guidance Notes, the BAS has accepted responsibility for ensuring that the Guidance Notes are kept up to date as necessary, including as a result of legislative or regulatory change.