National Insurance Contributions (Employer Pensions Contributions) Bill: motion to disagree with Lords Amendment 2

Parliament voted on 23 March 2026 to reject Lords Amendment 2 to the National Insurance Contributions (Employer Pensions Contributions) Bill, passing the government's motion to disagree with the amendment by 279 votes to 167. The amendment, introduced in the House of Lords by Baron Leigh of Hurley, would have excluded salary-sacrificed pension contributions above the £2,000 annual cap from the calculation of student loan repayments. By voting to reject it, MPs kept student loan repayment rules unchanged. The bill applies National Insurance contributions to employer pension contributions made through salary sacrifice arrangements above £2,000 per year, taking effect from the 2029-30 tax year. The Lords amendment addressed a side effect of this change: that salary sacrifice pension contributions above the cap could, depending on how student loan repayments are calculated, affect the amount a younger worker repays on their student loan. Opponents argued this created a double burden for younger workers trying to save for retirement while repaying student debt. The government's position was that the £2,000 cap already protects most lower and middle earners, that the measure targets a relief disproportionately used by higher earners, and that student loan rules should remain separate from this legislation. The vote divided almost entirely along party lines. All 277 Labour and Labour and Co-operative MPs who voted supported the government's motion to reject the Lords amendment, with no votes recorded against. All 88 Conservatives, 57 Liberal Democrats, 6 SNP members, 5 DUP members, 4 Reform UK members and 3 Plaid Cymru members who voted opposed the motion. Three independents voted with the government and four against. There were no notable cross-party rebellions on either side.