Archived decisions

AT A MEETING of the PENSION FUND PANEL held at The Castle, Winchester on Tuesday 3 March 2009.

Chairman:

p Councillor T.K. Thornber, CBE

Councillors:

p F.G. Allgood p P.R.C. Hutcheson

p M.F. Cartwright p M.N. Kemp-Gee

p B.D. Dash p A.R. Ludlow

p A.G. Dowden a J.J.W. Maxwell

Co-opted members:

p Councillor I.R. Carr (Test Valley Borough Council)

p Councillor D. Jones (Portsmouth City Council)

p Mr E.W. Hughes (pensioners' representative)

p Mr P. Reynolds (employee representative)

Independent adviser:

p Mr H. Cole

256 APOLOGIES

Councillor J.J.W. Maxwell was attending other County Council business and gave his apologies.

257 DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST

Members were mindful that, where they believed they had a personal or prejudicial interest in any matter to be considered at the meeting, they should, normally at the time of the debate, declare their interest and, having regard to the circumstances described in paragraphs 9, 10, 11 and 12 of the County Council's Code of Conduct, consider whether to leave the meeting whilst the matter was discussed.

Councillor M.F. Cartwright declared a personal interest in connection with the report on the Review of Alternative Investments Portfolio (Minute 262 below) in respect of the legal firm Stephenson Harwood.

258 MINUTES

The minutes of the meetings held on 21 November and 22 December 2008 were confirmed as a correct record and signed by the Chairman.

259 CHAIRMAN'S COMMUNICATIONS

The Chairman reported that he had received a letter from Kent County Council outlining proposals for local government pension funds in the South East area to form a joint property fund to invest £100m or more in the South East, which he would circulate to members of the Panel for their views.

260 GOVERNMENT CONSULTATION ON REVISED REGULATIONS FOR THE MANAGEMENT OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT PENSION SCHEME FUNDS

The Panel considered a report of the County Treasurer (Item 5 in the Minute Book) regarding consultation by the Government on revised regulations for the management and investment of the Local Government Pension Scheme. The Panel agreed to oppose the Government's proposals that administering authorities should maintain separate bank accounts for their pension funds and that they should no longer be able to use pension fund money for treasury management purposes. The Panel supported the introduction of a limited power for pension funds to borrow and proposals from the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy for a new definition of permitted investments and to replace detailed limits on investments with a set of principles.

RESOLVED:

That the draft response to the Government's consultation, attached as Appendix 1 to the report, be approved subject to additions strengthening the Panel's opposition to separate bank accounts and the revocation of the administering authority's power to use Pension Fund money.

261 EXCLUSION OF PRESS AND PUBLIC

RESOLVED:

That the public be excluded from the meeting during the following item of business, as it is likely, in view of the nature of the business to be transacted or the nature of the proceedings, that if members of the public were present during those items there would be disclosure to them of exempt information within Paragraph 3 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972, and further that in all the circumstances of the case, the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information, for the reasons set out in the report.

262 REVIEW OF THE ALTERNATIVE INVESTMENTS PORTFOLIO (EXEMPT)

The Panel received an update from the County Treasurer on the alternative investments portfolio (Item 7 in the Minute Book).
[SUMMARY OF A MINUTE WHICH CONTAINS EXEMPT INFORMATION]