UK Treasury Launches Consultation To Update Myners Principles

by Jason Gorringe, Tax-News.com, London

01 April 2008

HM Treasury, the Department for Work and Pensions and The Pensions Regulator (TPR), announced on Monday that they are launching a consultation on updating the Myners principles, a voluntary set of 'comply or explain' principles designed to improve trustee investment decision-making and governance of pension funds.

The consultation is in response to last year's National Association of Pension Fund (NAPF) review 'Institutional Investment in the UK: Six Years On', which recommended updating the Myners principles to ensure the continued spread of best practice among pension schemes.

Additionally, the consultation proposes a set of refreshed and simplified, higher-level principles and the development of a comprehensive suite of authoritative best practice guidance and tools, which will help trustees to improve investment decision-making and governance.

Following the NAPF's recommendation that the pensions industry should take increased ownership of the principles, the consultation proposes establishing a joint Government-industry Investment Governance Group to co-own the principles, monitor their effectiveness and the quality of reporting against them, and make recommendations for improvements to investment decision-making and governance.

Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, Angela Eagle MP, explained that:

"Paul Myners' goal was that the principles should become the accepted code of best practice in investment decision-making and governance, with trustees transparently assessing their capacity and practice against them".

"The NAPF's review of the Myners principles is an important step towards that goal. The Government is taking forward the review's proposals to simplify and update the principles, and to improve reporting against them."

Minister of State for Pensions Reform, Mike O'Brien MP, added:

"The principles have already done much to help improve pension trustees' investment decision-making and governance, and this consultation aims to allow trustees to continue to build on that progress."

Finally, the Pensions Regulator's Chairman, David Norgrove, commented that:

"The proposed Investment Governance Group, which The Pensions Regulator would chair, will provide a forum for both industry and Government to work together to improve trustee investment decision-making and governance standards further."

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