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1.1 Apologies were received from Councillors Tew and Councillors Gauden
Members confirmed the following declarations of personal interest: Councillor In Receipt of Pension Contributor Alfie Best NONE NONE Jon Horlor NONE Self David Williams Self and wife Self and wife Nathan Yeowell Father and two other family members (aunts) Self The PS left the meeting.
3.1 The minutes of the meeting held on 18/03/2024 were confirmed as an accurate record.
4.1 The Committee noted the minutes.
5.1 The PM outlined the report and provided an update on the administration services provided by the Pension Section and highlighted the following areas of current activity and development: · 33.62% of the total membership of the Fund is now registered on My Pension Online. · The annual My Pension Online statement would be sent out in August and was expected to lead to an increase of registrations. · There was work being undertaken with the Chief Information Security Officer to create a specific Business Continuity plan for the Pension Fund. This Fund specific business plan would set out the roles and responsibilities of officers in the Pension section. · As a result of the added complexity of the McCloud remedy, benefit calculations were taking longer to process. · As a result of McCloud some teachers have been made retrospectively eligible for Local Government Pension scheme benefits. Once these employees had been identified and confirmed by the employers, this work would be actioned by the Pension section. · Hymans Robertson’s General Code of Practice LGPS had been purchased as an additional resource to assist with the initial compliance self-assessment. A follow-up report would be presented to the Pension Committee in due course. · The Fund was considering Heywood Pension Technologies’ Dashboard readiness solution to assist the Fund in preparing for the dashboard. 5.2 Following questions from the Committee, the PM made the following points: • There were no official timeframes surrounding the teachers eligible for Local Government Pension scheme benefits. This was currently awaiting information from employers to progress and would retrospectively be calculated once the information had been obtained. • There would be comparative data sought regarding other Local Authorities’ My Pension Online registration figures. 5.3 The Pension Committee noted the content of this report.
6.1 The HoP presented the Greater Gwent (Torfaen) Pension Fund Business Plan covering the three-year period 2024-2027 for formal consideration and approval by the Pension Committee. 6.2 The purpose of the Business Plan was to show how the Pension section operated and to set out and monitor the strategic objectives over the next three years. This Business Plan would be updated annually and brought to the Committee each March. The plan had been scrutinised by the Local Pension Board in April and all comments following that meeting had been considered and reflected within this version of the plan. 6.3 The Council’s Communications Team had assisted with drafting this plan to ensure it was as engaging as possible and the final editorial piece was pending. The Plan included a wide range of topics such as the regulatory nature of Pension Committee, decision-making, Pension Awareness Days, compliance, business as usual, change activities and the main objectives of the Fund. 6.4 The IA & RA complimented the engaging nature of the Plan. 6.5 The Committee made the following points: • The Business Plan was visually impactive. However, it was noted there were areas where links between the high-level information and change activities could be explained further for reader understanding. • Some information could be condensed in order to make the Plan easier to read. • A glossary of terms would be useful to readers who were not knowledgeable regarding the Fund. 6.6 The Pension Committee noted the contents of this report and approved the Pension Fund Business Plan 2024-2027.
7.1 The HoP outlined the report and provided an update on the Pension Fund investment performance for the period 1st January 2024 through to 31st March 2024 (Q1 2024). 7.2 The Fund outperformed the benchmark during this period which equated to an increase in Fund value of approximately £231m. This was indicative of the long-term positive performance of the Fund. 7.3 The net asset value of property had started to stabilise after a turbulent period. The table on page 56 showed a breakdown of the Fund’s existing private market investments, including the capital committed to each mandate. The key point of this report was to show the Fund was performing well and all assets were moving in the correct direction. 7.4 Following questions from the Committee, the HoP, IA & RA made the following points: • There was no concern surrounding the Invesco Credit Partners Investment returns as this was a relatively new fund. • The asset allocation targets were felt to be realistic and achievable but the timescales initially set were ambitious. • With regard to private market allocation, the importance was stressed to be on undertaking these opportunities diligently rather than how quickly this was completed. • The market was currently strong and was the highest performing market during an election period since 1976. • It was reassuring to see the portfolio working as it is supposed to. • Technology stocks were still showing an extraordinary level of resilience. 7.5 The Pension Committee noted the investment performance that has taken place during quarter one of 2024.
8.1 The HoP outlined the report and provided an update on the work undertaken by the Wales Pension Partnership (WPP) on behalf of the eight LGPS funds in Wales. 8.2 The acquisition of Link Fund Solutions by Waystone Management had been a positive transition. A large number of staff were also transferred during the acquisition which was good for operational continuity. There was a good relationship and regular meetings between the Wales Pension Partnership, including Fund officers, and Waystone Management Limited. 8.3 Procurement updates could be seen on page 83 of the report. The WPP were currently in advanced stages of their procurement exercise in respect of real estate. This process had been concluded in May and further updates would be provided at the JGC meeting in July. In respect of Voting and Engagement, the WPP’s existing contract with Robeco was due to expire in March 2025. A procurement exercise for this retender would take place over the next 3 to 6 months. Additionally, the WPP’s Oversight Advisor contract with Hymans Robertson was due to expire in January 2025 and a similar process would be undertaken. Members would be provided with regular updates regarding these procurement exercises as appropriate. 8.4 Following questions from the Committee, the HoP made the following points: • It was felt that both the contracts mentioned above added value to the WPP. Hymans Robertson’s oversight was invaluable and Robeco offered a valuable resource to the WPP in terms of assisting its implementation of voting and engagement policy objectives. • All fees related to the existing contracts were paid for equally amongst the eight Welsh LGPS funds as this was based on the service provided rather than the size of the respective LGPS fund in terms of asset size. 8.5 The Pension Committee: · Noted the content of this report as well as the respective appendices. · Approved the WPP Business Plan for the period 2024-2027.
9.1 The PM outlined the report and provided an update on training already undertaken by members of the Pension Committee. 9.2 The training log from the previous year was included within Appendix One and the current years training log was included in Appendix Two. If there was any additional training that any members wished to undertake, this could be added to the log. 9.3 The Pension Committee noted the annual training programme included within appendix 2 and considered whether any other specific training areas or topics should be included.
10.1 The next meeting is scheduled to take place on 16/09/2024. .
11.1 The Committee agreed to the exclusion of the press and public from the meeting as presentations and meeting papers were not for publication because in accordance with paragraphs 12 and 14 of part 4 of Schedule 12a of the Local Government Act 1972 (as amended by the Access to Information Variation Order Wales 2007), it contained information about a particular individual and information relating to the financial and business affairs of particular persons including the Council and in all the circumstances of the case the public interest in maintaining the exemptions outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information. 11.2 The Chair invited the 7 members of the Pension Board to continue observing the meeting.
Councillors must say when they have a personal link to something being discussed, such as a job, a property or a family member. A prejudicial interest is one strong enough that the councillor usually leaves the room and takes no part.
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