Always a Pensions Angle

Podcast : High levels of volatility around inflation will force trustees to “take a bet” on the future, as it is very difficult — absent a crystal ball — to predict inflationary pressure and its impact on scheme liabilities, says Pension Playpen chief executive Steve Goddard. He is joined by Cardano managing director Emily Goodridge to discuss inflation, technology in pensions, and the future...

Podcast:  Industry consensus is needed to support a “pot follows member” solution to the small pots problem, previous attempts to solve it having failed, says Henry Tapper, executive chair of AgeWage. He is joined by Tom McPhail, director of public affairs at the Lang Cat, to discuss small pots, commercial consolidators, and more McCloud woe for the Local Government Pension Scheme. Hosted on...

Natural capital can improve scheme returns but trustees should not forget to consider their fiduciary duties of being able to pay pensions in the future and have a defensive investment strategy, argue Alina Donets, portfolio manager at Lombard Odier Investment Managers, and Stuart O’Brien, partner at Sackers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Podcast:  A light Spring Statement on pension topics meant that important issues such as financial education and support for institutional investors are still missing from the government’s agenda, argued Callum Stewart, head of defined contribution investment at Hymans Robertson, and Charlotte O’Leary, chief executive and executive director at Pensions for Purpose. Hosted on Acast. See acast....

Podcast:  Expanding auto-enrolment is a great idea in theory, but with sky-high inflation, a cost of living crisis and the potential for a global recession to exacerbate it, is now the right time to pursue it? LCP partner Mary Spencer and Cartwright’s director of investment consulting Sam Roberts debate the merits, discuss pension schemes’ reaction to war in Ukraine, and explor...

Podcast:  Pension schemes can extract returns from investing in wind and solar energies while dialling back on exposure to fossil fuels. Lombard Odier’s Michael Urban and the University of Oxford’s Matthew Ives examine the opportunities out there for schemes to capitalise on the renewable energy transition. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Podcast:  The intent behind universal charges on default funds is sound, but the method — such as the introduction of flat fees — risks harming the master trust sector and restricting access to pensions, according to The People’s Pension’s director of policy Phil Brown. He his joined by his colleague, head of pensions policy Tim Gosling, to discuss charge structures, decumulation solutions, a...

Podcast:  Auto-enrolment could bring significant benefits to the young, the low-paid and women, and the government must commit to a date to expanding coverage, according to Now Pensions’ head of PR and campaigns, Samantha Gould. She is joined by Linklaters pensions partner John Sheppard to discuss AE, pensions dashboards, and illiquid investments by defined contribution schemes. Hosted on Aca...

Podcast: As the Pension and Investment Provider Awards 2022 have opened for submissions, Barnett Waddingham’s Danielle Markham and Teneo’s Simon Kew — two of this year’s judges — give some tips on what applicants can do to maximise their chances of winning. LCP’s Stephen Budge, the architect of an award-winning entry last year, explains his strategy in creating a submission that allowed the consul...

Podcast:  The focus on defined contribution scheme offerings must “fundamentally shift” from costs to value for money in 2022 if better outcomes are to be achieved. Darren Philp, director of policy and communication at Smart Pension, and Mike Ambery, partner at Hymans Robertson, discuss the DC outlook, expanding auto-enrolment, and reforming Solvency II. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy...

Podcast: The time when schemes would award mandates and walk away has come to an end, since asset owners now need to have a fairly dynamic relationship with managers to make sure achieving net zero targets is possible, argues Thomas Höhne-Sparborth, head of sustainability research at Lombard Odier Investment Managers. He is joined by Marion Maloney, head of responsible investment and governan...

A significant proportion of the UK’s working population is struggling to save for retirement, and the Covid-19 pandemic has only worsened the situation. In this podcast, Now Pensions’ head of PR and campaigns Samantha Gould and the Pensions Policy Institute’s senior policy researcher Lauren Wilkinson talk us through the findings of a recent research report into the UK’s ‘underpensioned’ problem, a...

Podcast:  Local Government Pension Schemes looking to divest from Israel should do so on grounds of sustainability and fiduciary responsibility, not because of politics and personal morality, says Richard Butcher, managing director of PTL. He is joined by Ian Neale, Aries Insight co-founder, to discuss divestment, defined benefit funding and ageing populations. Hosted on Acast. See acast...

Podcast:  The dispute between doctors, firefighters and the Treasury over who should bear the costs of the McCloud remedy could have implications beyond the directly affected schemes, damaging trust in pensions, and lowering member morale. Hymans Robertson partner Michael Ambery and Quietroom co-founder Mark Scantlebury discuss McCloud, the statements season and the evolution of member commun...

Podcast: Inflation is one of a number of concerns for the Pension Protection Fund, with post-Covid uncertainty tempering reaction to an otherwise positive set of results released in its annual report published on Monday. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Podcast:  Climate change and environmental issues are front of mind for many pension schemes right now, but with the Covid-19 pandemic highlighting social inequalities at home and abroad, the social aspects of ESG investment cannot be ignored. For this episode of the Pensions Expert podcast, we talk to Stefan Lundbergh, director at Cardano, and John Howchin, secretary-general of the Council o...

Podcast:  The government mandating default funds be aligned with ‘net zero’ would be a way around concerns about fiduciary responsibility, but there are questions about what this would mean in practice. Stuart O’Brien, partner at Sackers, and Gareth Stears, pensions technical consultant at Aries Insight, discuss environmental, social and governance issues, social housing,...

The green bond market is forecast to hit $500bn (£366bn) by the end of this year, according to the Climate Bonds Initiative, while the UK government has just raised £10bn from its debut green bond issue. However, high demand and limited supply raises questions over pricing and yield, while the availability of suitable projects has ignited concerns over greenwashing. In this podcast, Arthur Le...

Podcast:  High inflation will spur more schemes to look to switch from the retail price index to the consumer price index, but there is still no way around the “rules lottery”. Eversheds Sutherland partner Stuart Earle and Aon partner Lynda Whitney discuss inflation, the botched attempt to raise the normal minimum pension age, and a new value for money framework. Hosted on Acast. See acast.co...

Podcast:  With climate change becoming central to investment discussions, trustees also need to think about how similar risks can affect the strength of their scheme’s sponsor and its ability to stand behind the pension fund. In this podcast, Lincoln Pensions managing director Michael Bushnell explains what questions trustees need to ask, what to do with the information they get, and why empl...

Podcast:  The negative reaction of the industry to the Pensions Regulator’s new code of practice shows what can happen if consultations are handled poorly, says Tim Middleton, director of policy and external affairs at the Pensions Management Institute. He is joined by Steven Taylor, partner at LCP, to discuss consultations, collective defined contribution schemes, and flexibility within the...

Podcast:  The Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association “could have died” from the financial damage wrought by the Covid-19 pandemic, and was only saved thanks to prudent long-term planning. Richard Butcher, managing director of PTL, reflects on his tenure as PLSA chair in an episode covering guaranteed minimum pensions guidance, master trusts and bespoke indices for environmental, socia...

Kim Gubler, chair of the Pensions Administration Standards Association, and David Saunders, partners at Sackers, discuss defined contribution consolidation, the Aon and Willis Towers Watson abandoned merger, new developments in the pensions dashboards project and the regulator’s review of schemes eligible for the Fraud Compensation scheme.   Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for mor...

Podcast: The Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures requirements are a great opportunity for pension funds to set a strategy which helps them understand the financial risks involved in climate change, says Will Martindale, group head of sustainability at Cardano. He is joined by Joanne Segars, chair of the board of directors of LGPS Central and chair of Now Pensions, to discuss h...

Podcast: Politicians and the pensions industry risk jeopardising the progress made on sustainable investing because they are too fond of jargon. Members are keen to get involved, but they have to understand what they are getting involved in. Georgia Stewart, chief executive of Tumelo, and Chris Hulatt, co-founder of Octopus Group, talk sustainability, inter-generational fairness and cryptocurrenci...