Always a Pensions Angle

Trustees aiming to make ethical investment decisions can find it tough to justify them without recourse to a crystal ball, as the legal requirements are ill-defined, says Irwin Mitchell’s pensions partner Penny Cogher. In this episode she’s joined by independent consultant and long-time pensions expert Malcolm McLean for a discussion covering capital-backed endgame deals, the complications of new...

The challenges posed by Covid-19 will accelerate the move towards professional trusteeship, according to Mercer’s chief actuary Charles Cowling, who argues that the responsibilities in this area post-coronavirus will be too much for lay trustees to handle alone. He and Catherine McFadyen, head of public sector actuarial, benefits and governance at Hymans Robertson, discuss LGPS funding, the impact...

The UK master trust market is still lacking the scale needed to provide the best outcomes for members, argues Gregg McClymont, director of policy at The People’s Pension. He and Pat Sharman, managing director at Caceis, discuss concerns from the Pensions Regulator regarding the investment strategies pursued by some of the UK’s authorised master trusts, among other topics. Hosted on Acast. See acas...

Trustees should not take advantage of easements introduced by the Pensions Regulator, which has relaxed its enforcement rules and reporting guidelines, warns John Reeve, director at Cosan Consulting. He and Kate Smith, head of pensions at Aegon, discuss the recent changes to the pensions industry brought by the Covid-19 pandemic, alongside other issues. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for m...

Measures introduced by the Pensions Regulator – which allow employers to freeze their defined benefit obligations for three months in response to the economic fallout from coronavirus – might need to be reviewed, warned Emma Watkins, annuities director at Scottish Widows. However, she says the plan gives “breathing space to the most stressed pension schemes”, an opinion shared by Simon Kew, covena...

Former pensions minister Steve Webb argued that “it would be astonishing” if the March 11 Budget does not bring a solution to the issues caused by the tapered annual allowance for doctors and senior clinicians. Sir Steve, now partner at Lane Clark & Peacock, and Lydia Fearn, head of defined contribution and financial well-being at Redington, discuss, among other t...

The Pensions Regulator should take a “softly-softly” approach to defined contribution consolidation, similar to what happened with master trusts during the authorisation process, where subtle conversations occurred and schemes decided to exit in an orderly manner, according to Adrian Boulding, director of policy at Now Pensions. He and Rosalind Connor, partner at Arc Pensions Law, discus...

Government and regulators should rethink pension schemes’ chair statements, as they have become a regulatory compliance tool for the pensions industry, according to Darren Philp, director of policy and communications at Smart Pension, and Judith Fish, professional trustee at Dalriada Trustees. In this week’s podcast, the experts discuss, among other subjects, the recent fine received by the Financ...

Trustees and employers should consult members on their beliefs, and incorporate the investment views of the majority in their pension default fund, according to Romi Savova, chief executive at PensionBee, and David Brooks, technical director at Broadstone. The experts discuss the impacts of a landmark ruling finding that veganism is a philosophical belief, alongside other topics, in this week’s po...

It has been a rocky few months for sterling, with the currency falling more than 7 per cent since May. In this podcast, Shoqat Bunglawala, head of Goldman Sachs Asset Management’s global portfolio solutions business, and Simeon Willis, chief investment officer at XPS Pensions, discuss the main reasons behind the decline, and what it means for pension funds. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com...

The Pensions Regulator’s latest defined contribution survey revealed that only 4 per cent of micro schemes and 1 per cent of small schemes are meeting all of the watchdog’s governance standards. David Fairs, TPR's executive director for regulatory policy, analysis and advice, has previously described the "long tail" of underperforming smaller schemes as "unacceptable". In this podcast, Mr Fairs ta...

Is there a big difference in governance standards between boards with a professional trustee and boards without? Should lay trustees have to demonstrate how they have acquired a minimum level of knowledge and understanding? And what can be done to increase diversity on boards? In this episode, Laura Andrikopoulos, head of governance consulting at Hymans Robertson, discusses some of the P...

The government was recently denied leave to appeal a Court of Appeal ruling that pension changes discriminated against younger firefighters and judges. What does this mean for government policy regarding public sector pensions? And how could the issue spill over into private sector pensions? In this episode, Rosalind Connor, partner at Arc Pensions Law, discusses the far-reaching implications...

The Financial Conduct Authority recently expressed concern that too much of the defined benefit transfer advice it has seen to date is still not of an acceptable standard. In this podcast, Tom Selby, senior analyst at AJ Bell, and Bob Scott, senior partner at LCP, talk about the impact of increased regulatory scrutiny of transfer advice, the need for DB flexibility, and how schemes and employers c...

In January, the Financial Conduct Authority launched its consultation on investment pathways and other proposed changes to its rules and guidance. The consultation closed in April and the watchdog plans to publish its final rules and guidance in July. In this podcast, Jonathan Parker, director of DC and financial well-being consulting at Redington, discusses how investment pathways will...

While technology is helping improve pensions communications across the industry, several challenges remain. In this PE podcast, Shola Salako, trustee representative at Dalriada Trustees, and Rhys Williams, strategy director at communications consultancy Quietroom, discuss the different ways in which schemes and providers can engage with members, and where they might be going wrong. Hoste...

From asset pooling and actuarial valuations, to administration and data, local government pension schemes have a lot to think about this year – meaning good governance is more important than ever. In this podcast episode, Kirsty Bartlett, partner at law firm Squire Patton Boggs, and Ian Colvin, head of LGPS benefits and governance at Hymans Robertson, discuss potential conflicts of inter...

Master trusts have until the end of March to complete their applications to the Pensions Regulator for authorisation. In this PE podcast episode, Ian McQuade, director at Muse Advisory, discusses master trust selection and how the watchdog's authorisation and supervision regime will change the market. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Last month, the Professional Trustee Standards Working Group published a set of new standards, which all professional trustees will be expected to meet. The group is also due to launch an associated accreditation framework later this year. In this episode of the PE podcast, Rachel Croft, director at Independent Trustee Services, explains what these new standards mean for schemes, how they wil...

2019 is predicted to break last year's record for bulk annuity deals. But with insurers being more selective, experts have stressed the need for defined benefit pension scheme trustees to make sure they are well prepared before approaching the market. In this episode, Marian Elliott, head of integrated actuarial at consultancy Redington, discusses the main drivers behind increased derisking activi...

New regulations coming into force this year mean pension schemes will be required to publish more-detailed statements of investment principles. These will address financially material environmental, social and governance risks, such as climate change. In this episode, Stuart O'Brien, a partner at law firm Sackers, discusses recent ESG-related developments, the danger of conflating ethical mat...

Last month, the government published a consultation on the consolidation of defined benefit pension schemes. What is the outlook for DB superfunds? And what should trustees consider if they are thinking about switching from a sponsor covenant to a consolidator covenant? In this episode, Alex Hutton-Mills, managing director at Lincoln Pensions, and Paul McGlone, president of the Society of Pension...

Earlier this month, the Department for Work and Pensions published its long-awaited feasibility report and consultation on how the industry can create online pensions dashboards. What does the industry make of the study? And how much progress is needed to make the project a success? In this episode, Girish Menezes, board director at the Pensions Administration Standards Association, and Anthony&nb...

Earlier this month, the Supreme Court ruled that Barnardo’s cannot change the inflation protection it provides to members of its defined benefit scheme from the retail price index to the consumer price index. So, what does the result mean for other DB pension funds and their sponsors? Matthew de Ferrars, pensions partner at law firm Pinsent Masons, and Faye Jarvis, pensions partner at law firm Hog...

Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond has delivered his Autumn Budget. To mull over patient capital and what might have been, Alex Janiaud is joined by James Riley, council member at the Society of Pension Professionals, and Steven Cameron, pensions director at Aegon. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.