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No. | Item |
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APOLOGIES To receive
any apologies for absence Minutes: Apologies were received
from Councillors Trevor Edwards, Margaret Lyon (Conwy County Borough Council
Representative), John P. Roberts and Tudor Owen. |
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DECLARATION OF PERSONAL INTEREST To receive
any declaration of personal interest Minutes: None to note |
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URGENT ITEMS To note any
items which are urgent business in the opinion of the Chairman so that they may
be considered Minutes: None to note |
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The
Chairman shall propose that the minutes of the meetings of this committee held
on 20.10.16 and 10.11.16 to be signed as a true record Additional documents: Minutes: The Chair signed
the minutes of the previous meeting of this committee, held on 20 October and
10 November 2016, as a true record. |
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FUNDING STRATEGY STATEMENT 2017/18 - 2019/20 To consider
the Investment Managers Report Additional documents: Minutes: Following the Actuarial Valuation in November 2016,
the Investment Manager highlighted the fact that it was required for the Council
to review and publish a triennial Funding Strategy Statement (FSS) by 31 March
2017 (it was noted that the current Gwynedd FSS had been approved by the
Pensions Committee on 17 March 2014). A (draft) report was submitted by the
Investment Manager who was willing to share it for a consultation period with
the employers that were part of the scheme, the actuary and the fund's
consultant. In response to a question regarding submitting the
strategy, it was noted that the strategy was to formalise the discussions held
on 10 November 2017 - summarising the decisions made with the employers. It was
reported that although the document was a technical and substantial one, it had
been prepared in consultation with the support of Hymans. RESOLVED TO ACCEPT
THE REPORT AND THE PRESUMPTIONS AND POLICIES OUTLINED IN THE REPORT WERE
CONFIRMED TO BE CONSULTED APPROPRIATELY |
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INVESTMENT STRATEGY STATEMENT 2017/18 - 2019/20 To consider
the Investment Managers Report Additional documents: Minutes: A report was submitted by the Investment Manager, asking the Committee to approve the
Investment Strategy Statement
(draft) (that is taking place, in
name only, the Statement of Investment Principles
- in accordance with the requirements of the new legislation) for consultation with all interested parties by 31 March 2017. It was reported that the strategy was based on investment arrangements
and what needed to be done to deal with Investment Managers. Should the investment arrangements need to be changed, this strategy would
need to be revised. In response to a question regarding Britain leaving the European Union, and the need to adapt investment methods, it was highlighted with worldwide portfolios that there would
be no need to adapt investment methods because it would be the companies being affected directly. In response to a question regarding ethical investments, it was highlighted that the administrator's main responsibility
and aim was to ensure the best returns to the fund and definite and
strong reasons would be needed to follow a 'political' investment strategy that could endanger
this. In response to a question regarding investing in local infrastructure,
it was noted that exciting regional
opportunities did not offer themselves
to North Wales and that investing in infrastructure
that did not offer itself,
was a risk in terms of gains. In considering Wales Investment Pools, the possibility of encouraging discussions and conveying opinions
on investing in infrastructure was suggested, giving full consideration to possible enterprises in North Wales. It was suggested that the Wales Pool possibly had the flexibility of investing in a more local infrastructure as the size enabled a more direct investment in infrastructure. It was noted, should the need arise to review
the Fund's investments, that there would
be a need to amend agreements with Investment Managers. The logical step would be to offer observations to
representatives of the Wales Investment Pool. It was suggested
to hold a discussion at the
investment panel before offering anything formal. A suggestion was also made that
the investment managers should respect the need to keep investments
legal, and act responsibly. It was noted that their
actions could be challenged to ensure that they were
wise enough not to invest in anything
suspicious. RESOLVED TO ACCEPT THE REPORT AND THE DRAFT
STATEMENT FOR THE CONSULTATION PERIOD WAS APPROVED. |
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WALES INVESTMENT POOL To consider
the Head of Finance Report Additional documents:
Minutes: Submitted – the report of the Head of Finance Department updating the Committee Members on the progress made to the development in the Wales Investment Pool to manage the investment assests of eight Local Government Pension Schemes (LGPS) in Wales on a co-operative
basis; and to seek the Committee's approval on Inter-Authority
Agreements to be recommended
to the full Council to approve,
in order to commit to establishing an All Wales Pool and govern the relevant Joint-committee. It was noted that the Burges Salmon company
drew up the Inter-Authority Agreement with a contribution from the finance officers and legal
officers of the eight funds. The agreement reflected what had been discussed over the past months. It was highlighted that the document was not final, but the members were asked to delegate
the right to the Head of
Finance Department, in consultation with the Head of Legal Department
and the Chair to agree on any
changes to the Inter-Authority
Agreement before submitting it to the full Council for approval on 2 March 2017. It was noted that
minor amendments needed to
be done before submitting it, but that the agreement,
in terms of form, was quite accurate. During the ensuing discussion the following points were highlighted by individual Members: ·
It should be aimed to ensure that the Welsh language was central to the Pool's work ·
The host authority would need to arrange that documents were available bilingually and formal, public meetings would be held bilingually ·
That a suitable location was needed for the Pool's Joint-committee meetings In response to the observations, it was noted that
the language matters had been highlighted at a meeting of the Pool's Chairs on 11/1/2017 and had been 'accepted
as an understanding.'
The Solicitor highlighted that it was possible
to add this to the agreement. It was acknowledged that language provision standards varied across Wales. Proposed and seconded - to ensure that official
formal meetings of the Pool's Joint-committee followed the full bilingual procedure, and appropriate clauses should be included in the agreement. In expressing gratitude for the work done
in drawing up the agreement, an application was made to the officers to note, if they
were uncomfortable with any situation,
that they report back to the Committee. In response to the comments, the Solicitor noted, by establishing Partnerships, it was essential not to set strict elements. It was highlighted that a high level
of key matters continued on local
levels and that this was part
of the agreement. It was also noted that
the joint-committee would adopt local rules. In response to a comment made regarding differences in council regulations in committee membership,
and specifically the Chairmanship period, it was noted that
Gwynedd arrangements would
be adapted to comply with rules and
arrangements of other Councils. In response to an observation regarding Gwynedd offering themselves ... view the full minutes text for item 7. |