Pensions Week articles from January 2006

Pensions Week archives from January 2006

DWP official condemns industry's self-interest.
January 16, 2006... Byline: Matthew Craig A top civil servant at the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has accused the pensions industry of being riddled with vested interests that are blocking genuine pensions reform. Peter Askins, head of policy...

T&N retirees prepare to sue trustees over pension loss.
January 16, 2006... An action group of early retirees and deferred members at the Turner & Newall (T&N) pension scheme are considering legal action against T&N trustees, including the independent trustee, for breach of trust over the administration of the scheme...

News: Expect more final salary closures.
January 16, 2006... Byline: Daniel McAllister Burgeoning pension fund liabilities are forcing companies to close their final salary provision, industry advisers have warned. Despite solid investment per-formance, bond yields are wiping out equity gains...

News: Lay off trustees, says DWP.
January 16, 2006... Pension scheme trustees will remain at the heart of the governance of defined benefit pension schemes, according to a senior civil servant at the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). Peter Askins, head of policy of pension fund trustees...

News: Mellon secures currency brief.
January 16, 2006... The GBP342m London Borough of Brent pension fund has awarded a currency overlay mandate to Mellon Global Investments. The mandate will overlay Brent's GBP150m overseas investment portfolio and will be managed by the specialist global...

News in brief: Pensions trust brief.
January 16, 2006... Multi-employer scheme the Pensions Trust has been appointed to manage the pension arrangements for a charity for the blind. Action for Blind People has transferred 180 active, deferred and pensioner members to the Pensions Trust's money...

News in brief: Light switch.
January 16, 2006... Lighting design company, Holophane, has appointed multi-manager Investment Solutions to run its GBP100m closed defined benefit plan. Necessitated by a need to improve investment performance, Holophane has adopted a liability-driven...

News in brief: DB alternative sought.
January 16, 2006... Escalating costs of running defined benefit (DB) pension plans has forced a multi-employer scheme to call on members to suggest alternatives to the existing final salary scheme. The Social Housing Pensions Scheme (SHPS) pensions committee,...

News: Row over Green's GBP1.2bn payout.
January 16, 2006... Byline: Daniel McAllister Arcadia boss Philip Green's decision to downgrade its pension scheme while paying himself a bumper GBP1.2bn dividend has sparked disputes over potential legal ramifications for similar deals. Green's move to...

News: Unions threaten strike action over pensions.
January 16, 2006... Unions and big business are locked in conflict over a string of changes to company pension schemes. The Transport and General Workers' Union (T&G) has been up in arms over Co- op's plans to close its final salary scheme and cuts to...

News: Field and Willets attack government on retirement policy.
January 16, 2006... Two senior politicians have spoken out against government decisions over retirement provision proposing alternative solutions to the pension 'crisis'. Frank Field, Labour MP and chairman of the pensions reform group, and David Willets,...

News: 'Protected rights arena still a problem despite DWP ruling'.
January 16, 2006... Byline: Matthew Craig The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has been criticised for "missing the point" and failing to understand investment risk, in its latest ruling on the treatment of contracted-out rebates, or protected rights....

News: Standing up for trustees.
January 16, 2006... The role of independent trustees within pension schemes has been defended following criticism by the outgoing chairman of the Financial Reporting Council. Bryan Nicholson expressed his concern that increasingly complex decisions are being...

Events: Risk-based levy Q&A.
January 16, 2006... The Pension Protection Fund, in conjunction with the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, is holding a series of workshops to answer questions on the risk-based levy. The workshops will be split into sessions covering:...

Events: Flexible benefit forums.
January 16, 2006... Jardine Lloyd Thompson is holding salary sacrifice and flexible benefit seminars in London, Manchester and Bristol. Registration will be from 9.30 and the seminars will begin at approximately 10.00 and finish at 11.30. For further...

News: LGPS members hit out at proposals with strike action.
January 16, 2006... Aggrieved local government workers are planning industrial action against the government's proposed changes to its pension scheme. The Transport and General Workers' Union (T&G) accused the government of treating members of the Local...

News: Camden goes scheme-specific.
January 16, 2006... Byline: Gill Wadsworth One of the last remaining London local authority pension funds to follow a peer group benchmark has ditched the strategy in favour of a scheme-specific approach. The GBP657m London Borough of Camden pension fund...

News: Left Field - Taking a closer look.
January 16, 2006... Byline: Frank Field At the most recent work and pensions question time in the House of Commons, ministers responded favourably to the Pensions Commission's proposals for soft compulsion. And who would blame them? The idea has a lot going...

News: Trustee fixation with equities 'misplaced'.
January 16, 2006... Byline: Gill Wadsworth A fixation with equity market volatility is preventing UK pension fund trustees from focusing on the genuine threat to funding from inflation and interest rate risk, according to investment specialists. In spite...

News: Pension fund bull run logs third year.
January 16, 2006... UK pension funds have registered a third consecutive year of double-digit positive performance, according to Mellon Analytical Solutions (MAS). MAS estimated performance to be 18.2% in the 12 months to 31 December 2005. Recent gains follow...

News: Executives face high A-day tax.
January 16, 2006... Byline: Ruth Emery High earners may be sleepwalking into big tax bills on their pensions if they do not act before A-day, industry experts warned. More than half (57%) of those earning in excess of GBP40,000 are oblivious to the...

News: Standard Life asks for more focus on DC scheme issues.
January 16, 2006... Standard Life Investments (SLI) has called for more attention to be paid to potential problems in defined contribution (DC) schemes, with a particular emphasis on encouraging saving and improving the level of financial education. ...

News: Scheme members become integral part of fund amendments.
January 16, 2006... Employers will no longer be able to make changes to their pension funds without first consulting scheme members following regulations introduced last week. The regulations, which form part of the Pensions Act 2004, force employers to...

News: Royal Liver offers tiered advice with Park Row.
January 16, 2006... Friendly society Royal Liver is to use Park Row, the independent financial advice firm it acquired in 2003, as its distribution firm to three distinct tiers of the pensions, savings and protection market. Park Row has 600 advisers,...

News: Lack of knowledge causes investors to miss opportunities.
January 16, 2006... Poor investment knowledge and an ineffective asset allocation policy have seen institutional investors miss out on the advantages of hedge funds, according to a survey. The results of the EDHEC European alternative diversification...

News: Emerging markets key in 2006.
January 16, 2006... Byline: Gill Wadsworth Emerging markets and commodities are the must-have asset classes for pension funds this year, according to investment forecasts from fund managers. Investment houses continue to espouse the merits of a...

News: Bank of Ireland buys Guggenheim.
January 16, 2006... Bank of Ireland Group has boosted its alternative investment offering through the acquisition of hedge fund manager Guggenheim Alternative Asset Management. The group has purchased a 71.5% share of the US fund-of-hedge funds manager for an...

News: NAPF Notice Board.
January 16, 2006... A New Companies Act... A New Beginning? NAPF Corporate Governance Seminar 2006 Wednesday 25 January, NAPF London The NAPF is staging its third corporate governance seminar in January at a time when standards are widely seen as...

Ombudsman Watch.
January 16, 2006... Byline: Norman Russell Predictions Trying to explain the law of estoppel to a non-lawyer is like trying to explain the off-side rule to someone who has never played football. It is not an easy task. However, predicting the outcome of...

Governance Watch: Board composition causing indigestion for Arla Foods.
January 16, 2006... Arla Foods is holding its annual general meeting (AGM) on 24 January and RREV has raised several concerns over the company's corporate governance and has issued three vote recommendations against it. Arla has three independent...

Spotlight: Funding the regime jigsaw.
January 16, 2006... Byline: Mark Alexander Shortly before Christmas, an early present arrived in the form of the final scheme funding regulations and associated code of practice were published. This put the final pieces of the jigsaw into place - so at long...

Opinion: Leader - Check the options before emulating Rentokil.
January 16, 2006... Byline: Gill Wadsworth I doubt anyone was expecting 2006 to be a quiet one for occupational pensions but even the most hardened cynics might have been surprised by the turbulent start to the year. We're only halfway through January and...

Opinion: Personal View - Administrators get the green light to implement risk frameworks.
January 16, 2006... Byline: Sue Applegarth In the new pensions regulatory environment, where trustee accountabilities around risk and control are growing, the scheme administrator role will become increasingly high profile. Administration may not be as...

Opinion: Inside view - Trustee training evolves with effective e-learning tools.
January 16, 2006... Byline: Terry Clayworth Established legal requirements for trustees have been amplified in new legislation. Under the Pensions Act 2004, from April this year trustees will be required to have appropriate knowledge and understanding of the...

People on the move: Roseman starts relationship with HSBC.
January 16, 2006... Rachel Roseman has joined HSBC Securities Services as a relationship manager. Based in London, Roseman will report to David Hunt, head of relationship management. Prior to joining HSBC, Roseman had been part of the hedge fund...

People on the move: Penfida to offer guidance for pension fund trustees.
January 16, 2006... Byline: Daniel McAllister Former Lazard investment bankers Jonathan Dawson and Paul Jameson have set up the first independent advisory house for pension fund trustees, Penfida Partners. The Penfida team, which also includes Trevor...

People on the move: Campbell-Birkett anointed as Syndicate CEO.
January 16, 2006... Syndicate Asset Management (SAM) has appointed Michael Campbell-Birkett as group chief executive officer (CEO). Campbell-Birkett has over 20 years' experience developing banking and investment businesses in the UK, Europe and Asia. ...

People on the move: Quantitative additions at OMAM.
January 16, 2006... Old Mutual Asset Managers (OMAM) has given its quantitative research capability a boost with the appointment of Jinhui Luo and Xavier Gerard as research analysts. Luo joined from Barclays Global Investors, where he specialised in currency...

People on the move: Zurhorst to lead SWIP drive.
January 16, 2006... Scottish Widows Investment Partnership (SWIP) has appointed Peter Zurhorst as head of northern Europe with specific responsibility for expanding SWIP's institutional business in Germany. Zurhorst, who joined SWIP on 3 January, will be based...

News: FAS falls thousands short of payout target.
January 22, 2006... Byline: Daniel McAllister The Financial Assistance Scheme (FAS) is short-changing collapsed scheme members by up to 45% as MPs reached a majority in favour of full compensation ahead of a judicial review and European Court of Justice (ECJ)...

News: Hitchen takes up the reins at NAPF.
January 22, 2006... Chris Hitchen is to replace Robin Ellison as chairman of the National Association of Pension Funds (NAPF). Former chairman of the NAPF's investment council, Hitchen is also chief executive of the Railways Pension Trustee Company,...

News: Regulator catches trustee in the act of swindling.
January 22, 2006... The Pensions Regulator's whistle-blower tactics have caught a scheme trustee swindling pension benefits. David John Foster, chairman of the trustees of the Ericsson Employee Benefits Scheme, has been banned from acting as a trustee for...

News: Industry rates savings advice budget as 'ridiculously low'.
January 22, 2006... Byline: Hannah Williams Money set aside for educating savers enrolled in the government's personal accounts system has been deemed inadequate as behavioural finance research shows blanket education is ineffective. The government has...

News: Means-testing is key issue for Lib Dems as government pushes personal accounts bill.
January 22, 2006... Failure to reduce the spread of means-testing will cost the government cross- party support for its private pension reform, warned the Liberal Democrats, as the second reading of the state pension bill went through parliament last week. ...

News: Royal Mail's deficit cloud darkens.
January 22, 2006... Byline: Ryan Harrison Opposition parties have rounded on the government over Royal Mail's deepening financial crisis, as an exodus of big corporate clients heaped pressure on the firm to tackle its GBP5.6bn pensions deficit. BT...

News: Transfer values to be scheme-specific.
January 22, 2006... Pension transfer values will be calculated on a scheme-specific basis as government ruling responds to industry pressure. After a lengthy consultation period the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) announced the calculation of an...

News: Abbey hires BNY to handle liquidity fund.
January 22, 2006... Abbey has appointed the Bank of New York to act as administrator, transfer agent, trustee and global custodian for the group's first liquidity fund. The GBP4bn fund aims to provide investors with the opportunity to maximise the yield...

News: News in Brief - JPMORGAN WINs GBP20m.
January 22, 2006... Bedfordshire County Council has appointed JPMorgan Asset Management (JPMAM) to run a GBP20m currency mandate. The assets will be invested in the JPMAM managed currency plus fund as part of a diversifying drive by the local authority to...

News: News in Brief - Skipton appoints JLT.
January 22, 2006... Skipton Building Society has appointed Jardine Lloyd Thompson (JLT) to provide actuarial and investment consulting to its four defined benefit schemes. A number of the schemes have a career average structure with total fund assets standing...

News: News in Brief - ABNAM WIN the largest.
January 22, 2006... ABN Amro Mellon has secured the contract to run the entire back office for one of the UK's largest pension funds in a deal worth GBP5bn. The University Superannuation Scheme (USS) implemented a review of its custody arrangements two years...

News: Firms pinched by PPF levy hike.
January 22, 2006... Byline: Ryan Harrison A rash of small manufacturers are the latest casualties of a four-fold hike in the Pension Protection Fund (PPF) risked-based levy, threatening to push many into insolvency, consultants warned. Small and...

News: Capita Hartshead begins 'invaluable' pension scheme admin survey.
January 22, 2006... Capita Hartshead has launched a pension scheme administration survey to analyse costs and trends in the sector. Exploring topical pensions issues and their impacts on scheme administration, the 2007 survey will look at scheme responses to...

News: SSASs save property tax.
January 22, 2006... Companies looking to buy commercial property can save six-figure tax bills by buying through small self-administered schemes (SSASs). Smaller firms that are eligible to set up a SASS can harness the tax- efficient qualities of pension...

News: Letters.(Letter to the editor)
January 22, 2006... A different kind of wind up In response to the article by Kevin O'Donell in Pensions Week (4.12.06), if he was trying to wind people up, he certainly succeeded with me. To suggest that, unlike public sector workers, the private sector...

News: Government to rethink NPSS caps.
January 22, 2006... Byline: Daniel McAllister The government has bowed to industry demands and said it would rethink its decision to bump up individuals' contribution caps on personal accounts to GBP5,000. Minister for pension reform, James Purnell, said...

News: James Hodge is appointed as chairman of SPC.
January 22, 2006... The Society of Pension Consultants (SPC) has appointed former British diplomat James Hodge as its chairman. Hodge spent 37 years at the Foreign Office where he concentrated on trade and economic issues, with much of his time spent overseas...

News: Haringey looks for manager to handle GBP200m mandate.
January 22, 2006... The London Borough of Haringey pension fund has put out to tender for a GBP200m currency overlay mandate. The council scheme said the mandate may also include a passive hedge element. Haringey said it will look at resources and people,...

News: British Airways "gone too far" says T&G.
January 22, 2006... Dispute over the troubled New Airways Pension Scheme rumbled on as British Airways (BA) and unions were locked in talks to try and avert strike action. Revised pension proposals put forward by the airline, which included a normal...

News: Left Field - Dangerous decisions.
January 22, 2006... Byline: Frank Field The House of Commons has now carried out its main overall debate on the government's pensions bill, known as the second reading. Once this debate has taken place, the bill goes into what is supposed to be a detailed...

News: M&A to swallow up poor administration providers.
January 22, 2006... Byline: Hannah Williams Poor standards in the third-party administration market could lead to a wave of merger and acquisition (M&A) activity, providers warned. Malcolm Reynolds, commercial director at Jardine Lloyd Thompson, said...

News: Russell launches global set of indices.
January 22, 2006... Russell Investment Group has developed a family of global indices that it says will meet the changing needs of institutional investors. The firm, which also offers multi-manager and investment consulting services, said money managers are...

News: Axa IM looks to SRI to add value.
January 22, 2006... Byline: Matthew Craig Axa Investment Managers (Axa IM) said it is convinced responsible investing can improve investment performance, although it cannot demonstrate this. The fund manager said responsible investing, or considering the...

News: Thornton to review pension framework on behalf of govt.
January 22, 2006... Paul Thornton, a former senior partner at Watson Wyatt and past president of the Institute of Actuaries, has been appointed to review the regulatory framework for occupational pension schemes. Minister for pension reform, James Purnell, has...

News: Aquila admin system covers all schemes.
January 22, 2006... Pension administration software provider Aquila has released its latest admin system as the industry remains divided over the future of third-party provision. Aquila said its system, Administrator 5, covers core admin, investment and...

News: DC members lose out to inflation rise.
January 22, 2006... Defined contribution (DC) scheme members with non-inflation-linked pensions can expect their retirement income halved after inflation levels hit a 10- year high, a consultant warned. And figures showed the over-75s are still the age group...

News: Barings reticent to back global bonds for 2007.
January 22, 2006... Baring Asset Management has remained cautious on the returns pension schemes can expect from global bond markets in 2007. Angelina Chueh, manager of Barings' fixed income targeted return portfolios, said schemes should consider the...

Governance Watch: Taking roles and responsibilities to another Dimension.
January 22, 2006... Dimension Data Holdings will be holding its annual general meeting on January 31, 2007. The company has a significant presence in South Africa and is listed on the Johannesburg Securities Exchange in addition to its primary listing on the...

News: Notice Board.
January 22, 2006... NAPF Spring Trustee Conference One Great George Street, Westminster Raising standards and balancing interests will be the theme at the NAPF's spring trustee conference this year, which offers pension scheme trustees a timely...

News: Ombudsman Watch.
January 22, 2006... FILLING THE CARE GAP Last week I wrote about the 'care gap' - the gap between what older people need, in the way of care, and what care and support is available. The BLP charity team of excellent trainees and young associates did their bit...

Campaign for Pensions Justice: Reporting the reality behind the headlines.
January 22, 2006... Bobby Henderson - Dexion scheme member "I am 59 years old and I worked at Dexion from 1968 to 2003. I spent six years in Glasgow from 1968 to 1974, and moved to Bristol in1974 to oversee installations projects. Dexion went in to...

Spotlight: A sea of choices.
January 22, 2006... Byline: Simon Pearse As the size of the defined contribution (DC) market continues to increase in the UK, members of money purchase schemes are seeing their personal accounts mature and become a considerable element of their savings...

Opinion: Leader - Day 2,168: the wind-up victims are still waiting...
January 22, 2006... Byline: Gill Wadsworth With the European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruling over lost pensions expected on Thursday this week I was thrilled to hear of Gordon Brown telling reporters he wanted "Britain to be seen as a country of fairness"; at...

Opinion: Personal view - Honesty is the best policy for company pension schemes.
January 22, 2006... It is nearly 20 years since UK companies first had to make formal disclosures in their accounts about their defined benefit (DB) pension schemes. It all started when the UK Accounting Standards Board created Statement of Standard Accounting...

Opinion: Inside View - The risk is in not communicating across organisations.
January 22, 2006... Many pension fund managers would agree that risk management is a more important issue today than it was 10 years ago. Traditionally, plan managers had a choice of equities, fixed income and real estate vehicles in which to invest the pension...

People on the Move: Morley poaches industry top gun for CEO position.
January 22, 2006... Byline: Ryan Harrison Morley Fund Management has drafted in industry veteran Chris Phillips to become its chief executive officer (CEO) following an extensive search process. Phillips, who is CEO at Scottish Widows Investment...

People on the Move: State Street add analysts to aid progress.
January 22, 2006... State Street Global Advisors (SSGA) has swiped a duo of high-yield analysts from Boldwater Capital Management to strengthen its global fixed income group. Thomas Stolberg and Charles Haley have been hired to develop the management of...

People on the Move: Reed steps into support role at Threadneedle.
January 22, 2006... Threadneedle Investments has appointed Philip Reed as general counsel, in a newly created role dedicated to compliance. Reed joins the team from Norton Rose where he was a partner and solicitor advocate specialising in banking, financial...

People on the Move: Investec boosts research team.
January 22, 2006... Investec Asset Management has strengthened its stock-picking research team with the appointment of two sector analysts. Based in London, Jonathan Parker joins the firm's research team as a sector analyst for UK equities and Sue Xu joins...

People on the Move: AIMA expands its global support.
January 22, 2006... The Alternative Investment Management Association (AIMA) has announced a brace of appointments to its Hong Kong and London offices. Tim Kay joins as a director of AIMA's Hong Kong branch having held senior positions with Baring Asset...

News: Government must fix appalling FAS farce.
January 23, 2006... The government is being hit from all sides over its failure to adequately compensate pension scheme members who lost their life savings when their companies collapsed and is under pressure to rethink its much-maligned Financial Assistance...

News: GBP400m FAS promise will not be honoured until 2008.
January 23, 2006... The GBP400m promised by the government for its Financial Assistance Scheme (FAS) will not be made available until at least 2008, PW can reveal. Despite government assurances that the Treasury would set aside GBP400m over 20 years to give...

Campaign News: Ministers face further political pressure over FAS.
January 23, 2006... The government is facing increasing political pressure to stump up more money for the 85,000 wind-up victims waiting on the Financial Assistance Scheme (FAS). Both the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats have criticised the government for...

Campaign News: Government continues to hide behind FAS as thousands remain without compensation.
January 23, 2006... The government champions the Financial Assistance Scheme (FAS) as compensating those most in need of financial aid when members lost their pensions following company insolvency. However, PW has heard numerous cases where the FAS has failed...

Campaign News: FAS only helps 13 in two years.
January 23, 2006... The GBP400m promised by the government to pay the 85,000 victims of scheme wind-up has reached only 13 people in nearly two years since the fund's inception. The government's Financial Assistance Scheme (FAS), designed to reimburse the...