While the row over the taxation of private equity executives rumbles on, remarkably little has been written about the role of private equity companies in the demise of final salary pension schemes.

The roll call of pension schemes which have hit the buffers, after having been taken over by private equity firms, is worryingly long – BUSM, Texon and Dexion. (Apax Partners), UEF (Prudential Ventures), UK Safety and Totectors (Alchemy Partners), Allied Steel & Wire (Candover), Samuel Jones (Rutland Trust) and UPF (Phildrew Ventures) - to name just a few.

In many instances, the incoming private equity firm piled up debt and shifted pension fund liabilities into subsidiary companies, only to pull the plug subsequently, leaving the subsidiary overwhelmed by debt and the pension scheme in deficit.

Given that many of these firms collapsed before 2005 when the Pension Protection Fund came into force, the members and pensioners of these schemes were left at the mercy of the hopelessly underfunded Financial Assistance Scheme.

While extra funding has been promised for the FAS, this scheme will still not provide benefits at the same level as the PPF. Furthermore, its failure to date to deliver promised assistance in a timely manner does little to inspire confidence in its ability to help these people in the future.

Our new Prime Minister has promised to “listen to the people” and “mend old wounds.” Perhaps he would like to start by addressing the plight of the FAS members and calling the private equity hounds to heel.