Harrods has set aside more than £60m in its plan to compensate alleged victims of historical abuse.

More than 100 employees of the luxury department store are expected to claim up to £385,000 each via the redress scheme which is open until March 2026.

The scheme, launched in March, provides to victims who claim they have suffered abuse by former Harrods owner Mohamed Al Fayed, who died in 2023.

Multiple women have accused Fayed, who owned the luxury store between 1985 to 2010, of rape and sexual assault. The Met Police said that 146 people have come forward to report a crime in their investigation into Fayed.

Harrods have set aside £57 million to be used to compensate alleged victims, with an extra £5.3m reserved to cover legal and administrative costs, bringing the total amount allocated to £62.3 million.

Harrods Managing director Michael Ward said that “more than 100 survivors” have joined the process of the scheme since it was opened.

He added: “Compensation awards and interim payments began being issued to eligible survivors at the end of April 2025 and the scheme will remain open until 31 March 2026.”

The compensation scheme will award each eligible claimant general damages of £200,000. They could receive up to £385,000 in compensation, plus treatment costs, if they agree to be assessed by a consultant psychiatrist, or up to £150,000 without a medical assessment, Harrods said in March.

Partially due to the scheme, Harrods recorded a £34.3 million loss in its latest full year accounts, compared with a profit of £111 million the previous year.

In a statement announcing the scheme, Harrods said: “While we cannot undo the past, we have been determined to do the right thing as an organisation, driven by the values we hold today, while ensuring that such behaviour can never be repeated in the future.”

To be eligible for the scheme, claimants must prove that they were subject to sexual assault and/or wrongful testing, and prove that Harrods is liable.

Many of those who say Fayed abused them underwent intrusive medical examinations when they were hired.

In accepting a compensation offer, victims will waive their right to pursue further action for damages.

The Harrods Group also operates smaller stores at London’s Heathrow and Gatwick airports, as well as a small chain of beauty stores. Revenues for the financial year 2024 were broadly flat at just over £1bn.

It blamed the drop in profits on weaker beauty trading and modernising some of its systems.

Mr Ward added: “The current domestic and global economic environment means that current trading conditions in the luxury sector remain challenging.

“However, we remain confident in the strength of the business, and the resilience of the luxury sector, and that we will continue to drive progress towards longer-term growth and performance objectives.”

Fayed was not charged before his death two years ago.

Advisers to Pakistan’s military chief, Asim Munir, have reportedly approached US officials with a proposal to construct and operate a port at Pasni on the Arabian Sea, offering Washington a strategic presence in a geopolitically sensitive region. According to the Financial Times, the plan envisages transforming Pasni—a small fishing town—into a hub for transporting Pakistan’s critical minerals, including copper and antimony, essential for batteries, fire-retardant materials, and missile production. The town lies about 100 miles from Iran and 70 miles from Gwadar, where China operates a major port facility. The initiative, which is not official government policy, was reportedly shared with Munir ahead of his White House meeting with President Donald Trump last month. However, a senior Trump administration official clarified that the proposal had not reached the president or his advisers for discussion. The port plan forms part of a broader push by Pakistani officials to strengthen ties with the Trump administration. Other initiatives include collaboration on a Trump-backed cryptocurrency project, deeper cooperation against the Afghanistan-based militant group Isis-K, support for his Gaza peace plan, and access to critical minerals. US and Pakistani diplomats have described the relationship between Munir and Trump as “a bromance” since the president claimed credit in May for brokering a ceasefire between Pakistan and India. Over the summer, US-India relations have cooled, while Munir and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif publicly thanked Trump and even nominated him for the Nobel Peace Prize. Following their recent meeting, the White House released photographs showing Munir and Sharif presenting Trump with mineral samples. The Pasni port blueprint includes a railway to transport minerals from Pakistan’s interior, connecting to mines such as Reko Diq, developed by Canada’s Barrick Mining. The project’s estimated cost is $1.2 billion, with proposed funding from a mix of Pakistani federal and US-backed development finance. Supporters say the plan would diversify Pakistan’s strategic options while balancing relations with China, the US, Iran, and Saudi Arabia, following a recent security pact with Riyadh. The blueprint stated, “Pasni’s proximity to Iran and Central Asia enhances US options for trade and security. Engagement at Pasni would counterbalance Gwadar and expand US influence in the Arabian Sea and Central Asia.” It also flagged potential dual-use concerns at China’s Gwadar port under the Belt and Road Initiative, alluding to fears it could serve as a naval base, a claim denied by Islamabad and Beijing. The plan specifies no “direct basing,” meaning the port would not host US military installations. Pakistan has historically been a close US ally, first during the Cold War and then after the 9/11 attacks, but relations frayed due to Islamabad’s support for the Taliban in Afghanistan. One adviser, quoted by FT, said, “I’ve been telling our leaders we need to diversify from China. We don’t need to consult the Chinese as it’s outside the Gwadar concession.” Missouri-based US Strategic Metals (USSM) has shown early interest, signing a memorandum of understanding in September with Pakistan’s military engineering corps. USSM commercial director Mike Hollomon said, “In our conversations with the field marshal, he stressed that Pakistan has been an ally of the US for a long time and minerals is a way to rekindle a dormant friendship.” Late last month, Pakistan shipped a small first consignment of fewer than two tonnes of critical minerals, including copper, antimony, and neodymium, to USSM. The minerals sector currently accounts for about 3 per cent of Pakistan’s GDP, with large untapped reserves in insurgency-hit western provinces. Hussain Abidi, chair of the Pakistan Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, described the initiative as, “This is a reset with America through economic ties rather than just the traditional security ties.”

ISLAMABAD:

The federal government has implemented a new Contributory Pension Fund Scheme as the employees will now contribute 10 per cent of their salaries toward their pensions, making them eligible to receive a 12 per cent contribution from the national exchequer.

The Federal Government Defined Contribution (FGDC) Pension Fund Scheme Rules 2024 have been issued by the Finance Ministry’s Regulation Department under the Public Finance Management Act, 2019. The new scheme will be regulated in accordance with the Voluntary Pension System Rules, 2005, and the Non-Banking Finance Companies and Notified Entities Regulations, 2008.

The rules replace the earlier directive issued in August 2024, which had set the government’s contribution at 20 per cent.

On August 20, 2024, the Finance Ministry had initially announced the introduction of a contributory pension scheme for newly recruited civil servants and armed forces personnel. Under the revised system, civil employees recruited on or after July 1, 2024, including those in civil defense, will be covered, while implementation for armed forces personnel is expected from July 1, 2025, pending formal approval.

To support the new pension structure, the government has allocated Rs10 billion for the 2024–25 budget and Rs4.3 billion for 2025–26.

Sources revealed that the scheme was introduced on the recommendation of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank to address the rising pension liabilities, which the government has termed a serious fiscal risk. The reform will not affect current employees but aims to slow the growth of future pension expenditures.

According to government estimates, federal pension spending is projected to reach Rs1.05 trillion in 2024–25, up 29 per cent from Rs821 billion in 2023–24. Pension liabilities for the armed forces are expected to rise 32 per cent, reaching Rs742 billion in 2025–26 compared to Rs563 billion in 2023–24.

For civil servants, pension allocations have increased by 6.6 per cent to Rs243 billion in the current fiscal year from Rs228 billion last year, reflecting modest savings due to the reforms.

Under the new rules, only authorized pension fund managers will manage the fund. The government, as an employer, will deposit 12 per cent of an employee’s pensionable salary through the Accountant General’s Office, which will also monitor record-keeping and fund transfers.

Employees’ 10 per cent contributions will be automatically deducted from their salaries, and both employee and employer contributions will be transferred to the Employer Pension Fund before salary disbursement.

Employees will not be allowed to withdraw pension funds before retirement. Upon retirement, they may withdraw up to 25 per cent of their accumulated savings, while the remaining amount will stay invested under the Voluntary Pension System Rules, 2002, until they complete 20 years of investment or reach the age of 80, whichever comes first.

Employee payslips will now include detailed pension contribution information, listing both the employee’s and employer’s shares along with the total accumulated balance. The Finance Ministry will allocate an annual budget for the government’s share and sign contracts only with pension fund managers that support electronic fund transfers. The agreements will also require insurance coverage in cases of death or disability, to be provided through the designated fund managers.

To supervise the scheme’s implementation, the Finance Ministry will establish a Non-Banking Finance Company (NBFC), which will initially operate in an interim capacity until formally constituted. Pension benefits in cases of retirement, resignation, dismissal, or early retirement will be determined according to government regulations.

The Contributory Pension Fund Scheme marks a major shift from the traditional defined-benefit model to a defined-contribution system, aiming to enhance financial sustainability and ensure long-term retirement security for future public sector employees.