Following a sampling of ten universities, on how easy it is to find out what fund choices are open to DC members, USSDivest made the following requests at the meeting: Overall, the meeting was very positive, with USS responses largely in favour of our suggestions. USS provides standard information about DC choices, to be placed […]
Ahead of our meeting with USS in October which focussed on communication with members in the DC part of the scheme (who have the choice of an ethical fund for their contributions) we conducted a survey of how information is provided to members about these choices. This could become even more important if the changes […]
The recent announcement by the JNC that the threshold for the DC scheme will be reduced from £60k to £40k on 1/4/22 means that many more than the current 37% of active members will suddenly join the DC section. We think this presents a real opportunity to raise the level of awareness among USS members […]
Below is a summary of the meeting between USS and Ethics4USS held on January 21st. This meeting was primarily to discuss the results of a survey of members conducted by Maastricht University in October 2020. The survey showed strong support for sustainable investment from members – with many respondents happy to have smaller financial returns […]
So we recently asked USS three questions and we have now received their answers: Q. As a 10% owner of Heathrow Airport is USS supporting the building of a third runway despite the recognition that it would lead to a dangerous increase in carbon emissions and that further investment is risky as Heathrow could become […]
USS: Dame Kate Barker, Chair USS Trustees Dr Daniel Summerfield, USS Head of Corporate Affairs David Russell, USS Head of Responsible Investment Ethics4USS Brian Hoskins , retired member, Grantham Institute, Imperial Sue Blackwell, deferred member, Birmingham Ceri Sullivan, Cardiff Ellie Harrison, Dundee Charlotte, Rae, Sussex Andrew Jarvis, Lancaster Paul Kinnersley, retired member, Cardiff Introductions – All […]
USS is conducting a survey on ’Sustainable and Ethical Investment’. As you may know, to date USS has had major investments in fossil fuels along with armaments and tobacco. They have agreed to divest from tobacco but need to hear from members that we want them to divest from fossil fuels, armaments and other sectors […]
We have just observed major changes in the list of ‘USS top 100 equities’ on the website (https://www.uss.co.uk/how-uss-invests/the-fund/investments/uss-top-100-listed-equities). In total these represented over £ 1 Billion disinvested from carbon intensive industries. This appears to be a massive change in investment strategy and one that we believe is in line with the views of most USS members. […]
Attendees USS Daniel Summerfield – Head, Corporate Affairs (Chair) Simon Pilcher, Chief Executive of Investment Management Naomi Clark, Head Investment Product management David Russell, Head Responsible Investment Joel Sawyer, Corporate Communications Manager Ethics for USS Paul Kinnersley, retired member from Cardiff University, co-ordinator for Ethics for USS Sue Blackwell, ex of Birmingham University and deferred […]
Article from Times Higher Education (June 10th 2020) by Bill Spence The Universities Superannuation Scheme’s recent announcement that it will “exclude, and where necessary, divest” from tobacco companies, thermal coal and some weapons industries is welcome but long overdue. Members may be surprised, for instance, that it took 70 years for the discovery that cigarettes cause lung […]
So USS have refused to support Shareholder Resolution 21 at Shell’s AGM on May 19th. Their response is below. This is of course incredibly disappointing and we will continue to press USS to provide us with a pension that doesn’t rely on carbon intensive investments. We are asking for a meeting with Simon Pilcher Chief […]
Ethics for USS are working with others to support Resolution 21 at the Shell AGM in May. The letter below – signed by 405 USS members – many of them senior academics – from 35 UK institutions has been sent to USS on May 10th. We will publish their response when received. We call upon […]
