A PENSIONS expert said yesterday he was not surprised BMW could do away with its old pension scheme – but that it had represented a better deal for workers.

Ed Gibson, the head of financial services for Shaw Gibbs, an accountancy firm in Banbury Road, responsed to the news that BMW plans to close its two final salary pension schemes to future benefits from June next year.

Unite, the union which represents workers at the Oxford's Mini plant in Cowley plant, where thousands of pensions are under threat, said they were furious with the announcement 

Mr Gibson said final salary pension schemes were “superb” for employees.

He added: “It’s the sort of scheme the civil service, universities and the NHS provided and they are great if you’ve got one. What you get versus what you put in is fantastic but not for the employers, who basically sit there with a blank cheque.

“In my view it is a justifiable expense. But BMW’s problem is that the latest public figures show a hole of about £850m now between the two schemes.

“If the old scheme is closed employees will have a retirement income they are entitled to from that scheme, but anything extra is completely unknown.

“If someone is earning £30,000 a year, according to the last statement they are projecting a retirement value of £18,000.

“The only thing is that if retirement is in 20 years or longer and you keep working there for the next 20 years, you might only have £8,000.”