Pensions Week articles from April 2005

Pensions Week archives from April 2005

News: Mellon seeks replacement for another member of investment consultant team.
April 25, 2005... Mellon Human Resource and Investor Services has lost a second key member of its investment consulting team. Fraser Booth, research analyst at Mellon, has resigned from his post to join the Railways Pensions Management's (Railpen) in-house...

News: ITS to act as trustee to MG Rover schemes.
April 25, 2005... The Pensions Regulator has appointed Independent Trustee Services (ITS) as trustee to two MG Rover schemes. ITS is currently working with the regulator, the Pension Protection Fund and professional advisers to gather necessary information...

Election News: Conservatives' tax relief plans to boost savings spurs debate.
April 25, 2005... The Conservatives have stolen the march on the government over pensions policy by unveiling savings proposals which have stirred debate in the industry. Plans to bolster pensions savings with GBP1.7bn in tax relief for low to middle-income...

Election News: Granny goes head to head with Brown.
April 25, 2005... A disgruntled grandmother is pitching herself against Gordon Brown in the upcoming general election in a bid to raise publicity for people who have lost their pensions. Pat Sargent, a member of Dexion pension scheme who lost a large part...

News: Bucks tenders for alternative investment mandates.
April 25, 2005... The GBP800m Buckinghamshire County Council pension fund has put out to tender for a series of alternative investment mandates, accounting for 12% of the fund. The scheme has tendered for a specialist absolute return investment mandate for...

News: RBS warned of backlash over executive pay.
April 25, 2005... The Local Authority Pension Fund Forum (LAPFF) has called on the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) to disclose its remuneration plans for US executives. Councillor John Saunders, chair of the LAPFF, wrote to the chairman of RBS asking for...

News: Philips sells assets to MLIM, Hewitt.
April 25, 2005... Dutch firm Royal Philips Electronics has sold its asset management unit to Merrill Lynch Investment Managers (MLIM) and its pension administration services to Hewitt Associates for an undisclosed amount. The asset management operation...

News: Henderson sets up N American fund.
April 25, 2005... Henderson Global Investors has launched a North American equity multi- strategy hedge fund. The fund will invest in North American equity and equity derivative markets and use a pure alpha strategy with an absolute return objective. ...

News: Cheshire seeks managers for oe500m in mandates.
April 25, 2005... The Cheshire County Council pension fund has tendered for a number of mandates totalling GBP500m. The scheme is looking to appoint investment managers for a specialist active UK equity portfolio and global equity brief. The mandates...

News: PPF missed the simplification bandwagon, says Hymans.
April 25, 2005... Valuation guidelines set out for schemes to assess their risk-based levy and entry to the Pension Protection Fund (PPF) do not embrace simplification and are over-ambitious, according to actuarial consultant Hymans Robertson. Clive Fortes,...

News: Gissings to advise Liberata on employee benefits.
April 25, 2005... Business process outsourcing services firm Liberata has appointed Gissings to provide employee benefits advice. The contract covers all aspects of employee benefits, including pensions. Nick Greatorex, chief financial officer at...

News: Revamp of Sipps regulations pre-A-day needed.
April 25, 2005... Suffolk Life is calling on the government to take action on the regulation of the self-invested personal pensions (Sipps) market prior to A-day. John Moret, director of sales and marketing at Suffolk Life, said: "The current regulatory...

News: Low saving levels blamed on lack of incentives to save.
April 25, 2005... Sixteen million people in the UK are not saving for the future, according to market research organisation Mintel. Of those who are saving, 44% set aside no more than GBP100 a month. Mintel said this GBP100 included all types of saving...

News: Now is the time to invest in the commercial property market.
April 25, 2005... The UK commercial property market will deliver returns of up to 9% this year, according to real estate specialists. Fund manager Credit Suisse Asset Management (CSAM) said it expects strong returns from the market as a result of limited...

News: ACA: promotional policies for occupational pensions are counter- productive.
April 25, 2005... Policies that promote occupational pensions are failing, the Association of Consulting Actuaries (ACA) claimed. Research by the ACA found that a large number of people in the pensions industry felt that promotional policies were not moving...

News: Overseas experience could benefit UK pensions reform.
April 25, 2005... Foreign savings methods could hold the key to solving the UK pensions crisis, the Association of British Insurers (ABI) said last week. The ABI argued that the debate over compulsion, means-testing and the state pension system could...

News: Clerical Medical toes the line with group stakeholder.
April 25, 2005... Clerical Medical has improved its group stakeholder pension plans to fall in line with new regulations. The enhancements include compliance with Sandler regulations, an extended fund range via external fund managers, and lower charges,...

News: Simcocks combines P3 software and Isle of Man expertise.
April 25, 2005... Manx pensions administrator, Simcocks Pensions, has selected P3 Corporate Pensions Software to provide administration services for its domestic and international schemes. P3 will provide internet access to members and employers. P3 was...

News: Taylor Patterson offers Sipps in three formats.
April 25, 2005... Pensions advisers Taylor Patterson has introduced self-invested personal pension (Sipp) packages. Taylor Patterson will offer the Sipp products in three formats - cash, investor and master, each with its own level of charges. The...

News: Sainsbury workers go online for advice.
April 25, 2005... Supermarket J Sainsbury has introduced an online financial advice package for its employees, which will be available to workers via its pensions website. Sainsbury will use Towry Law's My Financial Friend package, which will allow workers...

News: oe300m bill to comply with simplification tax rules.
April 25, 2005... UK pension schemes will have to find GBP300m to comply with forthcoming tax rules aimed at simplifying the industry. Smaller schemes would be stung the most, having to fork out GBP700 per member to meet costs, which could drive some of them...

News: Hymans Robertson's magnificent seven.
April 25, 2005... Actuarial consultancy Hymans Robertson has appointed seven partners to the firm bringing the total to 27. The partners include: Cameron Caskie, scheme actuary; Brian Chalmers who will work within the firm's local government actuarial team;...

News: Benchmark - How to fund research.
April 25, 2005... From an investment manager's viewpoint, it's nice to see that one of Paul Myners' issues is close to resolution: how investment research should be funded. Associated with this are the subjects of bundled brokerage and soft commission. The...

News: Strike threat at Grampian as final salary scheme faces axe.
April 25, 2005... More than 900 workers at Grampian Country Food Group are poised to strike over the uncertainty of their pension provision. Members of the food chain's scheme are up in arms over fears that their final salary pension fund will close on 31...

News: Better access would spark interest in pensions, says Scottish Life.
April 25, 2005... Pensions need to be more accessible and engaging if people are to be interested in them, according to Scottish Life. The pension specialist arm of Royal London Group is calling on the industry to create more technology-friendly pensions to...

News: Pooled funds continue positive returns for eighth quarter in a row.
April 25, 2005... Balanced pooled funds achieved positive returns for the eighth consecutive quarter, this quarter, with a median return of 2%, the latest CAPs figures showed. Key equity markets saw positive returns in Q1 2005 - UK equities achieved returns...

News: Punter appointed actuary at Biwater.
April 25, 2005... Biwater has appointed Punter Southall & Co as actuaries to its pension fund. The Dorking-based water company appointed Punter Southall on the strength of its service approach, reputation and innovative styles, it said. Martin Duffy,...

News: Events.
April 25, 2005... TRUSTEE SEMINARS Mercer Human Resource Consulting has introduced a series of seminars aimed at developing trustee effectiveness. From April 2006, trustees will be legally required to understand the law relating to pensions, trusts and...

News: Increased employer contributions make final salary schemes good value for money.
April 25, 2005... Final salary pension schemes are still good value now that employers are paying almost five times more than employees in contributions, according to consultant Watson Wyatt. Latest figures from the Office of National Statistics found that,...

News: Charities call on government to end female pensioner poverty.
April 25, 2005... Pressure is mounting on the government to tackle the scandal of female pensioner poverty. Charities Age Concern and Fawcett are campaigning for the government to bring an end to female pensioner poverty and argue that equalising the...

News: Ombudsman watch.
April 25, 2005... No Minister Since I said I was going to write about politics and pensions, I have had a couple of letters with a picture of the sender in the top right hand corner. The first was from a serious looking chap called Gordon. He was very proud...

News: Railpen urges funds to use absolute returns to manage liabilities.
April 25, 2005... Pension funds should look at absolute returns to manage their liabilities and add diversification to their portfolios, Railpen Invest-ments said. Railpen, one of UK's largest pension funds and one of the biggest investors in hedge funds,...

News: Don't be lulled by low volatility, Investec warns.
April 25, 2005... Low volatility within the UK market could create a false sense of security for managers dealing in new pension fund strategies like portable alpha, unconstrained and absolute return funds, Investec Asset Management warned. Marc Abrahams,...

NAPF notice board.
April 25, 2005... NAPF annual conference & exhibition 12-13 May 2005 G-MEX Centre and MICC, Manchester Next week's general election is not the only landmark event in May. The election result may have profound consequences for the future of UK...

Governance update: RREV urges shareholders to block waiver of Rule 9.
April 25, 2005... RREV provides corporate governance reports on all listed companies' annual general meetings (AGMs) and also on any extraordinary general meetings (EGMs) held throughout the year. Shore Capital will be holding an EGM on 4 May 2005, the same...

Spotlight: To fund or not to fund?
April 25, 2005... Adair Turner, chairman of the Pensions Commission, argued that a case could be made for allowing funded rather than just pay-as-you-go (PAYG) compulsory pension provision on the basis that funding allows individuals to choose their position on...

Special Focus: Property - Contents.
April 25, 2005... Property has long been a feature of UK pension fund portfolios and for many trustees it is the original alternative asset class. However, property is enjoying a renewed interest following the potential introduction of real estate investment...

Special Focus: Property - Back in fashion.
April 25, 2005... Commercial property investment has become one of the best performing asset classes over the last decade, prompting some pension funds to increase their asset allocation for the first time in many years. Investment Property Databank figures...

Special Focus: Property - The evolution of the commercial property market.
April 25, 2005... The role of commercial property within the investment universe and its relative position within a mixed portfolio is changing. First, investor sentiment is placing more emphasis on longer-term, stabilised returns - attributes typically...

Special Focus: Property Funds - Q & A - Crossing all property borders.
April 25, 2005... The questions: 1. What are the primary drivers of cross-border capital allocation to property? 2. Is international market exposure successful? 3. What are the critical success factors? 4. What types of property are attracting...

Special Focus: Property Funds - Manager profile - Henderson Global Investors.
April 25, 2005... Background Founded in 1934, Henderson is a leading independent investment manager and manages GBP69.1bn in assets as at 31 December 2004. Henderson successfully provides investment management services to pension funds, charities, other...

Opinion: Leader - Seek consensus instead of scoring political points.
April 25, 2005... As expected and predicted, pensions is now regularly coming up as an election issue in the run-up to 5 May. While the politicians are trying to win votes or attack their opponents, their comments do show how pensions policy may develop in the...

Opinion: Personal view - Codes of practice for a simpler pension life.
April 25, 2005... In Simplicity, security and choice: working and saving for retirement, Andrew Smith announced the government would restructure and simplify pensions legislation to introduce the new regulatory approach. As part of this process, the Pensions...

Opinion: Inside view - Using best execution to get the best returns.
April 25, 2005... The Financial Service Authority's marathon consultation process on soft commissions appears to be on the final stretch. It started in 2001 with one apparently tangential point in the Myners' review. Four years and several consultation...

Roundtable: Pension Fund Administration - Intro.(Panel Discussion)
April 25, 2005... There has been considerable focus on raising standards among UK pension fund administrators and the industry has made progress in improving efficiency and customer service levels. However, with the advent of the and Pensions Act 2004 and...

Roundtable: Pension Fund Administration - Profiles.(Panel Discussion)
April 25, 2005... Penny Green, chief executive, SAUL Trustee Company Penny Green is currently chief executive of SAUL Trustee Company - trustee for the non-academic staff pension scheme of the University of London. The scheme has over 25,000 members and...

Roundtable: Pension Fund Administration - Tackling pension fund admin pre and post-A-day.
April 25, 2005... Gill Wadsworth, executive editor, Pensions Week: How do you think the Pensions Act 2004 will affect pension fund administration? Geof Pearson, pensions manager, Sainsbury's pension fund: I believe that you can't talk about the pensions act...

People on the move: Morley welcomes Westwood to its equities team.
April 25, 2005... Morley Fund Management has appointed Mark Westwood as UK equity fund manager in the core UK equities team. Westwood joins from Legg Mason Investments, where he is currently manager of the Legg Mason UK equity, UK income and UK opportunities...

People on the move: Gubbins to develop Aon's HR business.
April 25, 2005... Aon Consulting has appointed Mike Gubbins as business development manager within its human resource (HR) solutions division. Gubbins will be responsible for developing Aon's HR business, which provides learning, change management and HR...

People on the move: Quantrill to head Henderson's credit team.
April 25, 2005... Henderson Global Investors has appointed Gareth Quantrill as head of credit. Quantrill's appointment comes as part of Henderson's restructuring of its institutional asset management, following the appointment of David Jacob to head of...

People on the move: JPMorgan appoints Chinnery as client adviser.
April 25, 2005... JPMorgan Fleming Asset Management has appointed Simon Chinnery as client adviser in the UK institutional team. Chinnery joins from ABN Amro Asset Management, where he was director of UK institutional client services. Prior to joining...

News Just In... : Cloud hangs over PPF as default trends show it could accumulate its own deficit.
April 25, 2005... The Pension Protection Fund (PPF) is unlikely to have enough resources to meet claims if default trends of UK companies continue, according to Standard and Poor's (S&P). The independent investment research and indices provider said UK's...

News Just In... : Compulsion would leave oe4bn hole in govt finances.
April 25, 2005... Compulsory pension contributions could cost the government GBP4bn a year in tax relief, Aon Consulting has claimed. Aon said that if compulsion was introduced in the UK at a rate of 9% of pay (based on the Australian model), then it would...