Ex-owner of Norton Motorcycles faces jail over breaches of pensions rules
The former owner of Norton Motorcycles faces up to two years in prison after pleading guilty to illegally investing millions of pounds of people’s retirement savings into his own businesses.
Stuart Garner, who acquired the classic marque in 2008 and was feted by a series of UK government ministers including the MP Stephen Barclay, the prime minister’s new chief of staff since Saturday, admitted three offences at Derby magistrates court on Monday.
Garner will be sentenced at the end of the month, when he faces a maximum of two years in prison or an unlimited fine.
The admission comes after pension holders had been complaining for years that the businessman had repeatedly ignored their requests to return their retirement savings. It also follows a 2020 Guardian and ITV News investigation that showed how more than 200 “ordinary working people” had had their entire pension pots invested into Norton shares.
The motorcycle company slumped into administration in January 2020, leaving the pension fund holders owed about £14m. In June 2020, Garner was ordered to pay the money back after the Pensions Ombudsman ruled he acted “dishonestly”. It is understood the pension holders are still waiting for any of their funds to be returned.
On Monday, the court heard that the offences related to three Norton pension schemes, Dominator 2012, Commando 2012 and Donington MC, which had a combined total of 227 members.
The investments into Norton breached technical pensions laws preventing more than 5% of an occupational scheme’s value from being invested into assets connected to the employer’s company.
Nicola Parish, executive director of frontline regulation at the Pensions Regulator, said: “As a trustee, Stuart Garner failed to comply with
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