UK Archives - Page 63 of 188 - Pension Policy International

23OctOctober 23, 2023

UK. Billions in local government pensions invested in fossil fuels – analysis

Billions in local government pensions have been invested in the fossil fuels industry, according to new analysis. Environmental campaign groups Friends of the Earth and Platform London analysed data gathered through Freedom of Information requests. The groups said they were able to analyse data covering 75% of the assets under management for the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) – one of the largest schemes in the country – for the financial year 2021/2022. They found at least £12.2 billion invested in fossil...

October 23, 2023

NewsESG, Investment, UK

20OctOctober 20, 2023

UK. Government urged not to direct pension fund investment policy

The Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association (PLSA) has told the government that it should not direct the investment of defined benefit (DB) pension funds and should instead allow trustees to invest in assets that meet a scheme's risk-return characteristics and offer appropriate diversification. In a policy paper unveiled at PLSA’s Annual Conference 2023, the body called on the government and regulators to give DB schemes the freedom to take on more investment risk so that they can invest in assets...

October 20, 2023

NewsInvestment, Regulation, UK

17OctOctober 17, 2023

Majority of employees back proposed reforms to UK pension system

The majority (88 per cent) of employees back the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association’s (PLSA) proposed reforms to the UK pensions system, research by the association has found. In particular, the research found that more than half (53 per cent) of employees agree that contribution levels should rise gradually over the next decade from 8 per cent to 12 per cent, while 21 per cent of respondents were unsure. In addition to this, nearly half (46 per cent) agreed that employers...

October 17, 2023

NewsPension Reform, savings, UK

16OctOctober 16, 2023

Twenty arrested in Hong Kong over false document pension withdrawals amid row over UK passport

Hong Kong’s anti-corruption agency said on Friday 20 people had been arrested suspected of taking bribes to help people apply for early withdrawal of government pension funds with false documents, amid a row over new passports offered by Britain. Hong Kong pension funds have been in the spotlight since the emigration of more than 140,000 Hong Kong people to Britain after 2020 when China imposed a national security law on the former British colony, cracking down on dissent. Many of these...

October 16, 2023

NewsOperations, UK

13OctOctober 13, 2023

As the U.S. birth rate falls, immigration reform may be ‘the answer hiding in plain sight,’ analyst says

As the U.S. fertility rate continues to fall, there are growing concerns about the long-term economic impact: A smaller population means less tax revenue, which could reduce funding for programs such as Social Security and Medicare. But immigration policy reform could be one solution, some experts say. The U.S. birth rate fell slightly in 2022 compared with 2021, with roughly 3.7 million babies born nationwide, and the birth rate still hasn’t recovered to pre-pandemic levels, according to an initial analysis from the Centers for Disease Control...

October 13, 2023

NewsAging, Labor Market, UK

13OctOctober 13, 2023

UK. Govt urged to using ‘more timely’ data for state pension triple lock

The government should consider using more timely inflation and earnings growth data as part of long-term plans for the state pension triple lock, Aegon has said. The September inflation figure that could be used for the state pension increase in April will be announced next week (18 October), although it is expected to be below the 8.5 per cent earnings growth figure for May-July, which was published in August. While Aegon acknowledged that state pension rises need to be confirmed early...

October 13, 2023

NewsInflation, Public Pensions, UK

12OctOctober 12, 2023

U.S. Public Pension Funds Show Moderate Improvement in Q3

Today, Equable Institute released a mid-year update to its State of Pensions 2023 report. The analysis finds the aggregate funded ratio for U.S. state and local retirement systems are on track to improve from 75.0% in 2022 to 78.8% in 2023, based on data available through September 30th, 2023. Equable Institute estimates that unfunded liabilities will total $1.39 trillion for the 2023 fiscal year, compared to $1.59 trillion at the end of 2022. As more data becomes available about fiscal year 2023,...

October 12, 2023

NewsPublic Pensions, UK

12OctOctober 12, 2023

Pension deal agreed for UK academics but divisions over pay remain unsolved

University staff will have their pension benefits restored by next April under an agreement reached between Universities UK (UUK) and the University and College Union (UCU), which represents over 120,000 researchers and teaching staff. UCU members have taken 69 days of strike action since 2018 to defend their pension benefits. But the union has vowed to keep the pressure on as it seeks concessions on pay and job security. UCU has balloted its members and will know by the...

October 12, 2023

NewsPublic Pensions, State Pensions, UK

11OctOctober 11, 2023

UK. TfL pension fund on track to reduce carbon emissions by 2030

The Transport for London (TfL) pension fund estimates that it will reduce its carbon emissions by 56% by 2030, according to its latest Net Zero Carbon Journey update. So far, the fund has reduced its absolute carbon emissions by 30% since 2016, despite the fund being 40% larger. The fund is also ahead of where it needs to be on its net-zero journey in its active public portfolio with a weighted average carbon intensity (WACI) reduction 18% ahead of target and...

October 11, 2023

NewsESG, Investment, UK

10OctOctober 10, 2023

U.K. investment managers see assets dip 12% in 2022

Assets managed by the U.K. investment management industry fell to £8.8 trillion ($10.61 trillion) at the end of 2022, a 12% decrease from the previous year, according to the Investment Association's annual Investment Management Survey. The survey released Oct. 10 attributed the drop to a broad-based market correction reflecting monetary policy changes, inflation, the Ukraine war and other global uncertainties. "The markets experienced an unusual correlation in the direction of travel for both global equities and bonds," the survey report said. Sharp...

October 10, 2023

NewsInvestment, UK

October 2023