All articles by Tom Dines – Page 20
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News
Dorset ditches hedge funds for infra after strategic review
Dorset County Council Pension Fund has moved into infrastructure investment and increased its diversified growth fund allocation after a shift in its investment strategy intended to reduce risk without affecting returns.
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News
Schemes face costly tax defeat after HMRC ruling
Defined benefit schemes have been urged by advisers to take steps to ensure they can continue to recover VAT on professional services, following an unexpected legal interpretation from HM Revenue & Customs.
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News
Daily Mail grabs alternative inflation linkage in place of pricey gilts
The Daily Mail and General Trust pension fund has used alternative assets to provide inflation linkage, after demand and monetary policy drove up the cost of using gilts to mitigate inflation risk.
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News10,000 retained firefighters could take up benefits extension, union predicts
The UK’s largest firefighters union has said 10,000 ‘retained’ personnel are expected to take up the option of extended pension benefits, which bring them into line with those offered to their full-time peers.
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News
WMPF to give Brum SMEs £40m boost as funds seek social impact
The West Midlands Pension Fund has set aside £40m for a direct lending fund to provide finance to small and medium-sized businesses in the Birmingham area, seeking a positive social impact alongside return.
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News
LLPs forced to consider enrolling partners after Supreme Court ruling
The Pensions Regulator has said limited liability partnerships will have to consider auto-enrolling their partners, after a Supreme Court decision threw their employment status into doubt.
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News
Careful asset selection urged in secondary property as inflows mount
Investment experts have warned about the importance of careful selection when investing in second tier-property, as schemes increase allocations to the sub-asset class.
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News
Employer raises doubts on impersonal retirement guidance
Industry figures have predicted that early engagement and face-to-face guidance will drive take-up of the Budget’s promised guidance guarantee, as the industry debates how it will be delivered.
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NewsPharma company sees tenth of staff up contributions after face-to-face comms
Pharmaceutical company Bayer has seen increased engagement from employees towards pension saving after a communication campaign relying heavily on face-to-face interaction.
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News
University calls for greater employer control within LGPS
The University of East London has called for a greater say in the running of the Barking & Dagenham Pension Fund, as it says funding the scheme has become a growing financial burden.
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News
Wiltshire: Early engagement key to managing LGPS reform
The head of Wiltshire Pension Fund said early engagement has been crucial to its implementation of this year’s Local Government Pension Scheme reforms, as local authority decision-makers stress the importance of staff training.
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News
Local authority experts debate how to fireproof governance
Local authority scheme experts at Wednesday's National Association of Pension Funds' 2014 Local Authority Conference discussed greater separation in decision-making structures, or increasing guidance, as ways to improve governance.
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OpinionBoth sides declare triumph after National Express resolution defeated
Shareholders have voted against a resolution backed by UK schemes at National Express Group's annual general meeting this week, with spokespeople on both sides of the issue claiming victory.
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News
Shell introduces reserve account to prevent contribution volatility
The Shell Contributory Pension Fund has created a contribution reserve account to prevent a trapped surplus as it exceeds full funding.
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News
Isle of Wight hunts admin software to meet reform obligations
Isle of Wight Pension Fund is tendering for pensions administration software as its current infrastructure is set to be decommissioned, in a move expected initially to cost up to £267,000.
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NewsSchemes poised for shareholder action at National Express Group
UK local authority schemes are taking part in shareholder action tomorrow in a bid to change employment practices in the FTSE 250 National Express Group's US subsidiary, arguing they could pose a financial risk.
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News
Early engagement key to guidance success, managers say
Pensions managers at two leading UK employers have called on schemes to communicate with their members well in advance of their retirement age, as schemes react to the government's guidance guarantee.
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Features
Mastertrusts call for governance standards to be made mandatory
Two of the country's largest mastertrusts have called for a legal standard to raise the barriers to entry for providers, as the industry evaluates the Pensions Regulator's assurance framework.
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News
Webb reveals further detail on guidance guarantee
Pensions minister Steve Webb released this week further details about the upcoming guidance guarantee, with concerns mounting on the timetable for its implementation and the subsequent burden on pension schemes.
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News
PPF plots future £4.4m saving from taking member services in-house
The Pension Protection Fund plans to make savings of around £4.4m a year by bringing its member services in-house, the pensions lifeboat’s three-year strategic plan has revealed.