Minister for Pensions and Financial Inclusion's reply to the Financial Conduct Authority: climate-related financial disclosures
Published 2 October 2020
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Guy Opperman MP
Minister for Pensions
Christopher Woolard
Interim Chief Executive Financial Conduct Authority
12 Endeavour Square
London
E20 1JN
30 September 2020
Dear Chris,
Thank you for your letter of 22 September setting out the plans for the FCA to introduce requirements for asset managers and personal pension schemes to report in line with the recommendations of the TCFD [Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures].
I whole-heartedly welcome the expedited timeline and fully endorse the speed with which you and colleagues at the FCA are willing to act to ensure TCFD is rolled out across your regulated community. In the run up to COP26, such progress will cement the UK’s place as a global leader on mandatory climate reporting.
I am glad that DWP and the FCA continue to collaborate, through the TCFD Taskforce, and hope that we can continue to work together as the FCA develop their proposals for asset managers.
You are right to highlight the important relationship between asset owners and managers that will be crucial in ensuring the flow of climate change data and information throughout the investment chain and will ultimately lead to more effective disclosures. I urge the FCA to ensure that the rules on which you consult are comprehensive, applying in due course to all fund managers, irrespective of the assets they offer. Such requirements should be at the product level so that schemes and their members can see what is happening with the assets that they actually own.
On contract-based schemes, government has always been keen to ensure that the requirements on such schemes do not diverge unnecessarily from those placed on trust-based schemes; that the FCA will develop proposals on TCFD for personal pension schemes by end of 2021 is therefore very welcome.
I will place your letter and my response on the record on Friday 2 October in order to demonstrate the co-ordinated approach that the UK is taking towards TCFD and the excellent work that the FCA is doing on the issue of climate change.
I would like to thank you for all of your work as the Chief Executive of the FCA and wish you the best in your future endeavours.
Yours ever,
Guy Opperman MP
Minister for Pensions and Financial Inclusion