Local fossil fuels campaigners say that an announcement made by the pensions minister today is an indication that Enfield Council is failing to keep up with the national trend which sees investors moving funds away from fuels that are contributing to the climate crisis. In a press release issued on Monday Divest Enfield say that the government announcement "puts Enfield on the wrong side of history".
Pensions Minister puts Enfield Council to shame as divestment stalling continues
Reacting to the news that the UK Government's Pensions Minister will make an unprecedented intervention and call on pension funds to divest from fossil fuels, Divest Enfield are contrasting this response with Enfield Council's continued stalling on whether they will divest from fossil fuels.
The Pensions Minister, Guy Opperman, will today tell the Association of British Insurers that pensions must do more on climate change, including divesting from fossil fuels. This is a major change from the Government's previous position, which was to avoid commenting on the investment decisions or strategies of pension schemes.
Adam McGibbon, Divest Enfield spokesperson, said: "This announcement shows that Enfield Council are on the wrong side of history on this issue, having now been outflanked by the Government. While they stall any progress on moving forward with a planned review of their pension fund's investment principles, the UK Government is taking action. Opposition is growing to fossil fuel investments all the time - Enfield Council need to move faster."
Divest Enfield have been engaging with Enfield Council since October 2018, but no substantive progress has been made on divesting from fossil fuels, despite Enfield Council claiming that a review of the Council's investment principles are underway.
Links
Opperman: Pension schemes must 'do the right thing' on tackling climate change (BusinessGreen 3 June 2019)
Pension schemes must do the right thing on climate crisis, says minister (Guardian 3 June 2019)
