In response to the growing UK pension crisis the government has announced moves to protect employee pensions. BBC News Online sets out what it means to you and what happens next.

Is my company pension safer as a result of these proposals?

Yes, workers with a pension have just had their rights boosted.

At present members of a company pension scheme are vulnerable to the sudden closure of their schemes by their employers.

Hit by falling stock markets many employers have closed their schemes to new recruits, increased employee contributions, or simply wound schemes up.

Under current rules, when a pension scheme is wound up the bulk of the benefits go to retired members, often leaving those of working age with little to show for their savings.

In some cases, solvent firms have wound-up schemes, an action condemned widely by unions and pension groups.

If firms choose to close a solvent scheme they will have to buy an annuity, income for life, for retired scheme members.

Firms will have to pay scheme members below retirement age money which they can invest elsewhere.

What if my firm is taken over, is my pension scheme still at risk?

Until now a new owner could do what it liked with an employee pension scheme.

Following a takeover, employees often found that their new bosses had slashed pension contributions or closed schemes altogether.

Under the new proposals, following a takeover firms will be compelled to match employee pension contributions up to a maximum of 6% of salary.

As for enforcement, the government has announced that it intends to introduce a new pension regulator to combat fraud and ensure its reforms are followed by firms to the letter.

In addition to these new rights, employees have the fallback of the new pension protection fund.

How does the pension protection fund work?

Put simply, it is a mutual insurance scheme.

Pension schemes are to be forced to pay a levy to the pension protection fund.

If a firm folds, the scheme will protect 90% of the value of current workers' pensions and the full value of retired members.

Any insurance could mean a fairer distribution of pension benefits but may place an extra burden on hard pressed employers.

To relieve that burden the government has announced that it plans to reduce the requirement on schemes to raise the pension of retired members by up to 5% a year.

In future, schemes will only be required to raise the income of retired members by up to 2.5% a year.

What happens next?

The consultation period on the green paper has now come to an end.

The proposals on the winding-up of pension schemes, announced on Wednesday, will come in with immediate effect.

The Department of Work and Pensions has told BBC News Online that other measures outlined to the House of Commons on Wednesday, such as the pension protection plan, will be brought before parliament in future.