BRUSSELS today ruled out financial help for more than 1,000 victims of the APW pensions collapse in Hampshire.

They lost four-fifths of their entitlements after the company's US owner closed the final-salary pension scheme because it wouldn't plug a £55m shortfall.

The British government is currently under pressure from local MPs to provide compensation to APW members under a pensions lifeboat, the Financial Assistance Scheme, following APW's controversial wind-up in the High Court late last year.

Now the EU has dealt a further blow to the victims, although there will be light at the end of the tunnel from others in a similar situation from September.

Hampshire MEP Chris Huhne pressed the European Commission to look at the issue in the light of EU law protecting pensioners.

Employment and social affairs commissioner Vladimir Spidla told him that the EU law, which dates from 1980, only protects employees and pensioners of companies that have gone bust.

That law does not cover solvent APW, which makes electronic enclosures at Chandler's Ford, where 285 people are employed.

However, the commissioner confirmed in a Parliamentary answer to Mr Huhne that a case like APW will be covered under new EU law from September 23.

From that date, EU law requires all pension funds to have "at all times sufficient and appropriate assets" to meet liabilities - and that those assets should be entirely separate from the sponsoring company.

Mr Huhne said: "It is a disappointment that the Commission says it cannot help.

"But it looks now as if we must redouble our efforts to persuade the British pensions minister, Malcolm Wicks, to ensure that the APW employees and pensioners are supported by the UK Financial Assistance Scheme."

Mr Huhne was one of the Parliamentarians who met Mr Wicks before Christmas with a delegation of APW staff.

Mr Huhne added: "At least it is some consolation to know that this terrible loophole, through which the APW staff have fallen, has been closed for the future.

"A big part of the APW problem occurred because of the redundancies at the company, which meant that it was receiving fewer contributions.

"In future, pension schemes should have to reassess their financial standing when major events like redundancies occur."

As a member of the European Parliament's economic and monetary affairs committee, Mr Huhne was one of the MEPs responsible for toughening up the regulation of pension funds under the new EU law, designed to establish a pan-European single market in pension funds.

Allen Beard, chairman of the APW action committee fighting for compensation, said of the EU ruling: "It is a disappointment, and we can only hope that Malcolm Wicks will look upon us kindly."

David Gallitano, the president of global APW at Wisconsin, slammed his phone down when contacted by the Daily Echo.