Nottinghamshire reveals SIP

Nottinghamshire County Council has upped its equities weighting which includes an extra tranche of money for its ethical fund manager Henderson Investors.

The move is revealed in the fund's new statement of investment principles (SIP), which incorporates a clause on socially responsible investment (SRI), though the increase in equities -from 55% to 75% - is the result of an asset liability study aimed at controlling employer costs.

Henderson's brief has risen by £5Om to £100m and its bond brief doubled to £250m. Nottinghamshire has also expanded its bonds, property and cash mandates from 25% to 45%.

The council's new SIP coincides with the deadline for pension schemes to illustrate any SRI elements in their investment strategy.

Nottinghamshire, which is viewed as a pioneer in SRI, has produced a detailed SRI statement which highlights Henderson's appointment and makes a case for a link between financial and environmental performance.

Nottinghamshire also highlights the fact that it keeps stocks in its own name and not in the name of its investment managers.

Imperial Tobacco, meanwhile, says that its SIP imposes no constraints on its fund managers to take into account social, environmental or ethical considerations when selecting investments. However, it does expect them to consider these issues when determining the financial attractiveness and overall investment risk of a company.

PricewaterhouseCoopers said last week that the pensions industry faces a huge challenge over the SRI regulations and that the issue will be driven to the top of the agenda of both the City and businesses.

Pensions Week
3 July, 2000

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