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.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Pensions Expert: Informing scheme decisions

Inflation and Covid uncertainty temper PPF performance

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 on Ethics for Sweden’s national pension funds, about why socially aware investing is so important for pension funds of all sizes — and how trustees can go about taking action.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Schemes’ trustees cannot ignore social factors risks

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, and the Pensions Regulator’s controversial criminal powers.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Mandating net zero could ‘cut straight through’ fiduciary duties

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 Leijgraaff, senior treasury officer at the Dutch development bank FMO, and Rik Klerkx, senior portfolio manager at Cardano, explain what goes into a green bond issuance, and what trustees need to ask of their asset managers and issuers.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Understanding green and sustainable bonds

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.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

No way to avoid the indexation ‘rules lottery’ as inflation bites

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 employers really need to pay attention to climate change in their pension finance discussions.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Trustees need to address sponsor covenant climate risk

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 defined benefit universe.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Industry ‘irritation’ with TPR’s code of practice could have been avoided

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, social and governance investments.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Covid-19 could have killed the PLSA

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.    See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Market capacity may be barrier to DC scheme consolidation

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 how schemes can best implement the imminent new rules.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

TCFD helps schemes to understand financial risks

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 cryptocurrencies.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Too much jargon hampers sustainable investing drive

Podcast: HM Treasury’s proposals to tap defined contribution schemes for its new Long-Term Assets Fund is not a bad idea, but problems with daily dealing remain, and it requires the kind of “rigorous” scrutiny applied to other new asset classes. PensionBee chief executive Romi Savova and Jonathan Parker, head of DC and financial wellbeing at Reddington, discuss the LTAF, rumours of a tax raid, and the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association’s new Responsible Investment Quality Mark.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Tapping DC for Long-Term Assets Fund requires ‘rigorous’ scrutiny

Podcast: A report from the Public Accounts Committee about the public sector pensions reform has showed that Treasury ignored advice that could have prevented the McCloud case, argues Ian Neale, co-founder of Aries Insight. He is joined by Sackers partner Claire Carey, in an episode also covering industry consultation fatigue and the new Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures reporting requirements.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Treasury ‘ignored advice’ in public sector pension reforms

The Pensions Ombudsman has declared schemes should have their transfer and due diligence procedures updated within a month of new anti-scams guidance. Compliance will require a huge amount of administrative time and resources, and trustees should give scheme administration more focus. LCP partner Francesca Bailey and Pensions Management Institute president Lesley Alexander talk scams, dashboards and corporate activity.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Trustees should focus more on scheme admin in anti-scam fight

Podcast: Police officers, who have complained about the ramifications of the government’s McCloud remedy, face a difficult battle to get their plight rectified, in another case where inadequate policy and communications has created damaging uncertainty for members. Quietroom development lead Joe Craig and Taylor Wessing senior associate Hadassah Shulman discuss this case, as well as simpler annual statements and the government’s anti-scam proposals.  See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Police officers let down by poor McCloud communication

Pensions Expert is the Financial Times' specialist title for UK workplace pension schemes.Our thought-provoking podcasts are designed to inform trustees and advisers of UK defined benefit and defined contribution pension schemes.Download to listen to debates and discussions on a range of topics, from investments to pensions law and regulation.

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Pensions Expert: Informing scheme decisions

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