Pension funds react swiftly to Myners' report
Reforms set out in the Myners' report on institutional investment are already being carried out by the majority of pension funds, according to a survey by the National Association of Pension Funds.
Link: FDs back Myners’ ‘intervention’ call
Of the 100 member schemes surveyed by the NAPF, 40% said they were already following the best practices set out by the report, while 36% had taken steps to comply and 17% said they had not yet complied, but were taking action to do so.
In general, the recommendations have been well received, with three-quarters of respondents saying the recommendations would improve investment decision-making. Just 1% said the recommendations would have an adverse impact.
NAPF chief executive Christine Farnish said: ‘This survey provides welcome evidence that pension schemes are taking on board the Myners principles, which reflected existing best practice.’
In June 2001, the report, by Paul Myners, chairman of Gartmore Investment Management, recommended scrapping the minimum funding requirement – legislation introduced after the Maxwell pensions scanda. It also proposed that fund managers take greater care and skill in their decision-making responsibilities and make more frequent use of their voting rights on issues that may affect the value of the planned investments.