Another BBC News Business report from Nov. 2012 says:
"The Pension Protection Fund (PPF) said the (pension scheme) deficit fell by £2bn to £227bn.
Although there is a difference in the deficit figures given in this and the above article, the following is of interest to understand what the private pension deficit is:
"The deficit is the balance between the value of scheme assets - such as shares, bonds, property and cash - and the liabilities of schemes.
The liabilities are the estimated stock of assets needed now, to pay all current and future pensions."
Are these pension funds keeping up with their target?
Apparently not.
"The PPF explained that although the value of scheme assets had risen by 7% in the past year, their liabilities had risen even faster, by 10.7%."
Link:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-20311530