Alison Leslie, Head of DC Investment Services, Hymans Robertson, says: "We are really pleased and encouraged by the voluntary Mansion House Accord which strikes a perfect balance between fiduciary duty and moving the policy agenda forwards. We do not believe mandation to be a good way forward, however a voluntary accord signals a meaningful and purposeful way of putting to work billions of pounds of pension scheme assets. We have seen great examples of UK investment delivering good returns for local areas through the LGPS pools to date, and believe there are good opportunities to invest in the UK for DC savers as well. The Mansion House Accord will deliver better member outcomes whilst supporting the economy that many savers will retire into. Too often the two ambitions are looked at in isolation, but we believe looking at this as a complete picture is necessary for both ambitions, and the developments today signal a big step forward in building UK saver pension pots for a UK worth retiring into."
Mark Searle, Senior Investment Consultant at XPS Group commented: “As has been widely speculated, Mansion House II has expanded the Compact to a larger number of asset owners, and also increased the commitment size from 5 to 10%, with half being directed to UK investments. We think now is an exciting time regarding the private market opportunity set as there’s a significant pipeline of assets becoming available on the secondary market from DB schemes as they approach buyout. These assets often have a focus on delivering cashflows, making them especially suitable for approaching, through and after retirement portfolios. Regarding the UK focus, we’re concerned about the volume of the supply of UK private market assets and we are glad to see this acknowledged by signatories of the Accord. To really drive improvements in member outcomes, we think savings adequacy needs to be addressed and we’re hoping to see comment on the balance between short and long-term savings get addressed in the second stage of the government’s Pension Review.”
Helen Dean, on behalf of Standard Life Master Trust Co. Ltd (SLMTC), the trustee of Standard Life’s DC Master Trust: “It is very important that pension funds are invested in a diversified set of assets, and we support the Government in suggesting that private markets, including investing in opportunities within the UK, should play an increasingly important part in the asset allocation strategy for UK pension funds. It is reassuring to see that in today's announcement Government have been so clear that they continue to support the principle that decisions about how pension scheme member's money is invested should be made independently of Government and with the best interest of members in mind. This fiduciary principle is extremely important and underpins trust and confidence in our pension system.”
Amanda Blanc DBE, Aviva Group Chief Executive Officer, said: “This is a major opportunity for the pension and investment industry to support UK growth while delivering improved outcomes for pension savers. As a significant investor in private markets, Aviva has recently launched a number of funds to give over four million workplace pension customers even greater opportunity to invest in UK assets, including innovative, early-stage businesses, and we want to do much more."
Jo Sharples, CIO, DC Solutions at Aon, said: “We believe that investing in private assets will benefit pension scheme members by delivering better expected returns over the long-term, ultimately resulting in higher retirement outcomes. The new Mansion House Accord is a great step forward in achieving this and is a fantastic example of how the UK pensions industry can work together to break down barriers to enable greater investment in private assets.”
Benoit Hudon, CEO and Chairman of Mercer UK said: “As founding signatories on the first Mansion House Compact, it's positive to see more firms signing up to this extended ambition. Having the flexibility and ambition to invest into initiatives that bolster UK economic growth has the potential to benefit communities, help put more money in people’s pockets and support public services and indeed the broader economy. We are pleased to have had the opportunity to work closely with government and other stakeholders to agree the joint commitment needed to make this initiative a success.”
Andy Briggs, Phoenix Group CEO, said: “This Mansion House Accord will unlock investment in UK private markets while helping deliver better long-term returns and retirements for millions of pension savers. The new commitments have the potential to strengthen the economy by fuelling the growth of British businesses and boosting investment in critical infrastructure.
Mansion House Accord
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