Declaring a climate change emergency
Local authorities can play a key role in tackling climate change – and there is plenty for them to do. Never before has thinking globally and acting locally been more important, says Mark Whitehead.
‘Rethink’ changes to local government pension scheme, Unison warns
09/08/2019 Plans to allow higher and further education employers to opt out of the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) could cause serious cash flow problems for funds, a trade union has warned. |
Hedging the currency risk
02/07/2019 Following the recent news that Croydon Council is considering hedging the currency risk in its pension fund, Jackie Bowie offers her view on optimal strategies to achieve the best outcome. |
Union hits out over changes to LGPS for non-teaching staff
06/06/2019 A trade union has blasted government proposals to allow universities and colleges in England to opt out of the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) for new non-teaching staff. |
Council pension fund forum welcomes Ryanair's chair stepping down
05/02/2019 The Local Authority Pension Fund Forum (LAPFF) has welcomed the announcement that the chair of Ryanair, David Bonderman, is stepping down from the role. |
LGA faces financial headache
25/01/2019 Smith Square has acknowledged the financial challenges it faces as it freezes subscriptions while grappling with declining Government grants and a pension scheme deficit. |
Outsourced council workers to have pensions protected
10/01/2019 Local government staff who have had their roles outsourced will receive increased pensions protections under new proposals published today. |
‘Tweaking’ wealth taxes could raise £7bn a year, think tank says
03/01/2019 Reforming Britain’s wealth taxes could help the Government raise £7bn a year by 2022-23 to help cover the cost of public services, a think tank has argued. |
Council pension funds at financial risk from climate change, report warns
09/11/2018 Local Government Pension Funds (LGPFs) are failing to protect themselves from the financial risk posed by climate change, a new report has warned today. |
Council pension fund forum calls for Ryanair chair to step down
29/10/2018 An association of council pension funds has called for the replacement of Ryanair’s chair and has urged Michael O’Leary to set out his succession plans. |
Council employee convicted of £1m pension fund fraud
16/10/2018 A former Westminster City Council employee has been convicted for defrauding the council pension fund of nearly £1m. |
Local authority pension partners commits further £550m to infrastructure fund
09/10/2018 The local authority pension partners of GLIL Infrastructure LLP have doubled their pledge to the infrastructure fund, bringing the total they have invested to more than £1.8bn. |
Labour warn of £2.7bn NHS cuts due to pension bungle
01/10/2018 The Government is planning to make £2.7bn of further cuts to the NHS before next election because of a bungle over pensions, according to the Labour Party. |
Local government pension scheme makes 'significant progress'
28/09/2018 The scheme that pays the pensions of local government workers is in a strong financial position and has made 'significant progress', according to a review. |
Glasgow council announces £20m pension fund investment
07/09/2018 Glasgow is aiming to attract high-tech American companies to the city with a £20m investment from the pension fund for council staff. |
Council pension funds invest £9bn in fracking industry
03/09/2018 More than £9bn is being invested in the fracking indistry by council pension funds, new figures have revealed today. |
Recruitment problems faced by half of council pensions funds
07/08/2018 Staff recruitment, retention and resourcing are the three greatest challenges facing Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) funds, according to new research. |
£46bn pension fund appoints new chairman
29/03/2018 The Northern Pool, one of the country’s largest investment funds, has appointed a new chair after the last chairman unexpectedly died at Christmas. |
‘Precarious’ work could put council pension investments at risk
19/03/2018 Investors should be wary of investing pension funds into companies that use precarious work practices, a new report has warned. |
Local Pensions Partnership launches new £320m fund
07/03/2018 The Local Pensions Partnership (LPP) today launched its first fund dedicated to investing in fixed income as an asset class. |
London council approves £150m low-carbon pension investment
26/01/2018 Southwark Council has agreed to move £150m of its pension fund into a low-carbon investment. |
Government pledges to protect public services following collapse of Carillion
15/01/2018 One of the country’s biggest construction and facilities management companies, Carillion, has gone into liquidation after struggling for the last few months. |
Council pension schemes purchase shares in Anglian Water
19/12/2017 Five council pension schemes have acquired, along with a separate company, a 15% share in Anglian Water (AWG). |
Britain’s record on fighting poverty ‘at risk’
04/12/2017 Britain’s record on tackling poverty is 'at risk of unravelling', campaigners have warned. |
Berkshire Pension Fund to pool assets with LPP
17/11/2017 The Berkshire Pension Fund has agreed to join Local Pensions Partnership (LPP) in order to pool assets and manage its liabilities. |
Council pension funds benefit from climate change investment policy framework
13/11/2017 The first climate change investment policy framework has been launched for local government pension funds. |
Councils investing £16bn of pensions into fossil fuels
09/11/2017 More than £16bn of council pension funds have been invested into fossil fuel companies, new research has revealed. |
Council pension partnership launches £1.3bn Credit Fund
05/10/2017 A £1.3bn Credit Fund has been launched by Local Pensions Partnership (LPP) to offer investors cost-effective exposure to diverse sources of return. |
Charities at ‘risk of collapse’ due to unaffordable LGPS debt
26/09/2017 Charities should be allowed to exit the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) to stop them building up unaffordable debt, according to a new report. |
Benefit pension funds insurer invests £60m in housing association
19/09/2017 A specialist insurer of benefit pension funds has invested £60m into a housing association which controls thousands of properties across the south west. |
Council pension funds call for review of working conditions at Sports Direct
07/09/2017 There needs to be an independent review of worker rights and corporate governance at Sports Direct, insist local authority pension fund representatives. |
Raising pension ages leaves women worse off
02/08/2017 Changes to the state pension age have left women aged between 60 and 62 years old worse off by an average of £32 a week, according to a new report. |
Union commits to moving council pension schemes away from fossil fuels
23/06/2017 Local Government Pension Schemes should be divested from fossil fuels within five years, Unison has argued today. |
Attempt to restrict council pension boycotts is ruled 'unlawful'
23/06/2017 A court ruled yesterday the Government’s attempt to prevent councils boycotting Israel through their pension schemes is ‘unlawful’. |
Campaigners take council pension boycott to high court
14/06/2017 Campaigners are challenging a government ban on council pension schemes withdrawing investment from companies associated with Israel. |
Local authority pension funds ‘ratcheting up’ climate change engagement
06/06/2017 Local authority pension funds are going to ‘ratchet up’ their efforts to encourage companies to be more aware of climate change and how it will impact the value of their stocks. |
Local government pension assets in 'good health'
01/06/2017 The asset side of local government pension schemes’ (LGPS) balance sheets is in good health, according to the latest performance analytics data. |
Council pension deficit falls by £9.2bn since 2013
17/05/2017 The funding deficit of the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) has fallen to £37bn from £47bn in three years, according to its latest valuation. |
Campaigners to unleash ‘fossil fuel monsters’ on London councils
11/05/2017 Climate campaigners are planning to march on London this Saturday with ‘fossil fuel monsters’ in order to urge the capital’s borough’s to divest from the polluting industry. |
Local government pension deficit falls to £35bn
24/03/2017 The Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) deficit has fallen to half the level previously expected - going down to around £35bn - new figures have revealed. |
Activists to challenge council pension boycott restrictions in High Court
16/03/2017 Pro-Palestine campaigners have been granted permission to take the Government to the High Court over law preventing councils from boycotting companies involved in Israel’s human rights violations. |
Scottish council pensions investing £1.7bn in fossil fuels
13/03/2017 Scottish council pension funds have been urged to invest more in sustainable energy and housing projects. |
MPs urged to examine local government pension scheme
02/03/2017 The chair of a leading pensions body has called for MPs to examine the local government scheme. |
Health and social care tops preferred pension investment priorities
16/02/2017 Nearly half of employees want their pension invested in areas such as health, social care and housing, a new survey has revealed. |
Erroneous pension payments
31/01/2017 Karen Pritchard explains why deceased pension fraud is costing local government millions of pounds every year. |
The shifting sands of local government pensions schemes
25/01/2017 Rob Whiteman looks at the challenges ahead for local government pension schemes as government reforms take shape. |
Sandwell backs ‘fairer’ pension motion for women born in the 1950s
20/01/2017 Sandwell councillors have backed a motion calling for a fairer deal for women born in the 1950s who have been affected by an increase in the state pension age. |
Reclassifying council pension funds would put infrastructure spend ‘at risk’
04/01/2017 The proposed reclassification of local authority pension funds as retail investors would put infrastructure investment at risk, pension experts have warned today. |
Pro-Palestinian activists take Government to court over pension boycott restrictions
19/12/2016 Pro-Palestinian campaigners are taking the Government to court over law preventing local authorities from boycotting companies involved in Israel’s human rights violations. |
Mayor urged to divest council pension funds from fossil fuels industries
08/12/2016 The mayor of London has been urged to divest all council pension funds away from fossil-fuel industries by the London Assembly. |
Council pension funds launch £5bn Global Equity Fund
02/11/2016 The Lancashire County Pension Fund (LCPF) and London Pensions Fund Authority (LPFA) have pooled their assets to launch a £5bn Global Equity Fund. |
Whitehall should not interfere with council pensions, union warns
25/10/2016 Ministers must stop interfering in council pensions, union warns as MPs debate the future of the local government pension scheme (LGPS). |
Welsh Local Government Pension Schemes to pool assets worth £13bn
17/10/2016 All eight of the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) funds in Wales have called on central government to enable them to pool investments worth a total of £13bn. |
Membership of council pension funds ‘on the rise’
13/10/2016 Local Authority Pension Funds (LGPS) are continuing to grow both their assets and fund membership, new research reveals. |
London council to divest pension from fossil fuels
26/09/2016 Waltham Forest Council has become the first local authority in the UK to divert its pension fund from all fossil fuels. |
Regulators ‘misstating’ Whitehall’s legal position, pension chiefs say
02/09/2016 Council pensions chiefs have accused financial regulators of misstating the Government's position on a complex issue of company law. |
Council pension fund supports working practices review of Sports Direct
24/08/2016 A local government pensions body has backed calls for a review into the working practices at Sports Direct. |
Councils urged to help people plan to budget for future care costs
23/08/2016 Three out of five people who have taken money out of their pension savings have not planned for how they will meet future care costs, a new survey has revealed. |
Councils urged to invest pension funds in new housing
05/08/2016 Local authorities should invest pension funds into Local Housing Development Funds in order to deliver new homes, according to the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA). |
Petition calling for debate on pension funds attracts 100,000 signatures
22/07/2016 Proposals to pool local government pension funds to invest in infrastructure have prompted 100,000 people to sign a petition calling for a parliamentary debate. |
New LGPS parliamentary group to develop British wealth funds
08/07/2016 A new cross-party parliamentary group has been set up to discuss the role local authority pensions can play in the development of British wealth funds. |
Warning Brexit could devalue council pension schemes
27/06/2016 The value of the Local Government Pension Scheme could fall as a result of last week’s decision to exit the European Union, councils leaders have warned. |
Council pension fund to make £30m infrastructure investment
08/06/2016 The pension fund of thousands of council workers in the West of Scotland is to be invested into key infrastructure projects. |
Employers joining LGPS 'underestimate' obligations
18/05/2016 The number of organisations signed up to the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) has rocketed, but experts have warned that many underestimate the obligations involved. |
Scottish pension fund rated a world leader in tackling global warming
11/05/2016 A council pension fund in Scotland has been rated one of the best in the world for addressing climate change. |
Union calls for law change to protect council pension fund decisions
11/05/2016 The law should be amended to include a European directive that ensures only councils decide where they invest their pension funds, a trade union has said. |
Council pension fund decisions will remain with sector says Government
20/04/2016 Councils will not be forced to invest their pension funds into infrastructure schemes, the Government has confirmed. |
Council pension funds get go-ahead to pool assets
11/04/2016 Two local government pension schemes are due to join forces after they got approval to pool their assets by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). |
Petition calls for debate on reforms to council pension schemes
05/04/2016 A petition calling for a parliamentary debate on plans to force local government pension funds to invest money in infrastructure projects has been signed by more than 12,000 people. |
Extra costs force councils to ‘crunch point’
31/03/2016 Extra costs, resulting from a double whammy of changes, are forcing councils towards ‘crunch point,’ council chief executives have warned. |
Pension reforms will see '£650m stealth cut' to public services
21/03/2016 Changes to public sector pensions, announced in last week's Budget, will see hundreds of millions cut from front line public services, according to research from the Liberal Democrats. |
Budget 2016: Public sector pensions will remain 'sustainable', claims chancellor
16/03/2016 The chancellor pledged today to ensure public sector pensions remain 'sustainable'. |
Council pensions invest £150m into UK windfarm
14/03/2016 A joint venture set up between two local government pension schemes is to invest £150m into a South Lanarkshire windfarm. |
Pension scheme reforms to help drive down costs
17/02/2016 Government proposals to reform the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) will help drive down costs, achieve better investment outcomes and stimulate new infrastructure investment, says a new report from BNY Mellon. |
Pension funds must not be gambled on Government projects, Unison warns
28/01/2016 The Government should not be able to ‘dictate’ how money from local government pension funds is invested, union leaders have warned. |
Creating an ideal partnership
20/01/2016 Pooling public sector pension funds is the way forward for investment in infrastructure argues Sir Merrick Cockell, but there needs to be an efficient mechanism in place to match projects with sponsors. |
Inflation-proofing of pensions could cost councils £1bn warns firm
12/01/2016 Reforms to state pensions could cost local authorities and their contractors up to £1bn due to a ‘quirk of legislation', consulting firm Mercer is warning. |
Council pension scheme must be replaced, says think tank
11/01/2016 A think tank has warned the Local Government Pension Scheme will soon reach crisis point and should be replaced. |
UK’s largest public sector pension scheme is a ‘national embarrassment’
18/12/2015 One of the UK’s largest public sector pension schemes is a ‘national embarrassment’, according to report. |
Council pensions should fund infrastructure say MSPs
30/11/2015 Councils in Scotland should take advantage of opportunities to improve their infrastructure through City Deals, the Scottish government has advised. |
London gets approval to pool local authority pension funds
26/11/2015 Local authority pension funds in London have been given regulatory approval to pool £25bn of assets. |
Where should councils invest their pension funds?
02/11/2015 William Eichler investigates what legal and moral considerations should influence the exercise of pension investment decisions. |
Exclusive: Return on investment must drive pension investments say staff
02/11/2015 The majority of local government staff do not want their pension fund invested in morally dubious companies such as the tobacco industry or the arms trade, according to our new reader survey. |
Figures show local government pension funds have grown by 13%
29/10/2015 Local Government Pension Schemes (LGPS) have been praised for their strong performance following the publication of new figures showing the value of funds increased by 13% in the past year. |
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Investment returns must not be compromised
23/10/2015 The announcement that chancellor George Osborne would like to see Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) investments pooled on a regional basis has provoked mixed reactions, writes Andrew Burns. |
Council pension funds invest £60m in renewables
20/10/2015 Local government pension funds in Greater Manchester and London have made a joint £60m investment in renewable energy projects. |
Lancashire County Pension Fund invests in Portuguese wind assets
15/10/2015 Lancashire County Pension Fund (LCPF) has acquired a significant minority equity stake in EDF Energies Nouvelles’ Portuguese wind assets. |
Council pension funds lose ‘£683m with coal crash’
12/10/2015 Local government workers have lost up to £683m from their pension funds due to the fall in coal share prices, new analysis has found. |
Council workers’ pensions are not ‘politician’s playthings’ warns union
06/10/2015 Plans to invest local government pension schemes in major infrastructure projects have been criticised as too risky by trade union GMB. |
Council pension funds to be combined to fund infrastructure projects
05/10/2015 Local authority pension funds are to be combined into six new British Wealth Funds to help increase investment in major infrastructure projects. |
Councils invest £14bn pension funds in 'risky' fossil fuels
24/09/2015 Local authorities have invested £14bn of their pension funds in ‘risky’ fossil fuels, according to new analysis of pension data. |
Unite reiterates commitment to fight for pensions
31/07/2015 Trade union Unite has warned changes to pensions for social housing staff should not be used as an ‘excuse’ for bosses to provide inferior schemes. |
Local government pension funds pool £10bn assets
03/07/2015 Two of the largest local government pension funds have joined together in a bid to reduce costs by £32m within five years. |
Clark urged to tackle £47bn local government pension deficit
19/05/2015 The £47bn deficit in the local government pension scheme (LGPS) should be a top priority for new communities minister, Greg Clark, experts area advising. |
Study warns of life expectancy time bomb
30/04/2015 People will live longer than official estimates suggest, leading to a future funding gap in health and social care provision, a new study is warning. |
Budget 2015: Osborne promises 'no gimmicks'
18/03/2015 George Osborne will today deliver the final Budget of this Parliament with a speech expected to deliver significant investment in the North. |
Outcry may change stance on council pensions
13/02/2015 It seems unlikely council pension funds will be forced to only use passive management, following the sector's strong reaction to government proposals. |
Council pension team wins firefighters’ contract
10/02/2015 Lancashire County Council's pensions team has won the contract to administer Merseyside's firefighters' pension schemes. |
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The future of pensions in local government
04/02/2015 Challenges with the LGPS and what to do about them |
Youngest children and poor worst hit by cuts, finds report
27/01/2015 Poorer groups have been worst affected by changes to direct taxes, benefits and tax credits despite the government's promise that the rich would carry the burden of austerity, according to a new report. |
Local government pension funds unite for £500m infrastructure investment
22/01/2015 Two of the UK's largest local authority pension funds are to jointly invest up to £500m in infrastructure. |
The June issue of Local Government News contains the full details of all the winning schemes in the 2019 Street Design Awards. From Children's Play to Pedestrian Environment, find out who has been recognised for their innovation and use of best practice.
This issue also explores how local government pension funds can hedge currency risk, how councils can best address the shortfall in school places, and an update on the number of authorities banning the use of Roundup over safety fears.
