Venue: Ystafell Gwyrfai, Council Offices, Caernarfon, Gwynedd. LL55 1SH
Contact: Lowri Haf Evans 01286 679878
No. | Item |
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ELECT CHAIR To elect chair
for 2019 - 20 Minutes: RESOLVED to elect Osian Richards as chair of the
Pension Board for 2019 - 2020 |
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ELECT VICE CHAIR To elect vice
chair for 2019 - 20 Minutes: RESOLVED to elect Councillor Aled Evans as
Vice-chair of the Pension Board for 2019 - 2020 |
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APOLOGIES To receive any apologies for absence Minutes: An apology was
received from Huw Trainor It was noted that
a seat for an employers' representative would be advertised before the next
meeting. |
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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: Representation of Board Members at Conferences Local Authority
Pension Fund Forum (LAPFF) Annual Conference 4-6 December 2019,
The Hilton, Bournemouth Osian Richards LGPS Governance Conference, 23 - 24 January 2020, The Principal Hotel, York Sharon Warnes |
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The Chairman shall propose that the minutes of the
meeting of this committee held on 17 May 2019 be signed as a true record. Minutes: The Chair signed
the minutes of the previous meeting, held on 17 May 2019, as a true record. |
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MINUTES and MATTERS ARISING FROM THE PENSIONS COMMITTEE To submit, for information, minutes of the Pensions Committee meeting held on the 29 July 19 and consider any matters arising Minutes: The minutes of the Pensions
Committee held on 29 July 2019, were accepted for information. The contents of the Statement
of Accounts 2019-20 and the external auditor's ISA260 report were suggested for
the Board's agenda for September 2020. The members
had no further observations arising from the minutes. |
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GENERAL UPDATE - PENSION ADMINISTRATION To consider the Pensions Manager Report Minutes: Meirion Jones was
welcomed to the meeting in his new role as Pensions Manager. It was noted that
Meirion was to succeed Nic Hopkins, the former Pensions Manager, who was on a
period of flexible retirement. Delyth Jones-Thomas was also welcomed to the
meeting. It was explained that Delyth was to succeed Caroline Roberts, the
former Investments Manager, who was also on a period of flexible retirement. Meirion and Delyth
were congratulated on their appointments. Nic and Caroline were thanked for
their service over the years, and best wishes were expressed for a happy
retirement for both. A comprehensive
report was submitted by the Pensions Manager, providing a general overview of
pensions administration over the past six months, along with information about
the work completed over the period, an update on various projects along with a
list of the challenges faced by the Administration Unit on a daily basis. During the
discussion, the members made the following observations: ·
The staff were thanked for encouraging and engaging
in discussions with employers to strive for the accurate and timely submission
of information. ·
The employers were congratulated for ensuring clean
and timely data ·
There was a need to set a definite timetable for
those employers who needed to transfer to the i-connect system. ·
It was suggested that a trial period should be held
for the trialling of the self-service website RESOLVED to accept the information. |
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TRIENNIAL ACTUARIAL VALUATION 2019 To consider the
Head of Finance’s Report Additional documents: Minutes: A report was
submitted by the Head of Finance Department providing general information and
an overview of the current valuation process for conducting a triennial
actuarial valuation, along with a proposed timetable. It was explained
that the valuation data had been presented to the actuary on 16 July and that
work had already commenced on the response to further enquiries from Hymans. It
was expected that an improvement will be seen on the result of the 2016 result,
namely a funding rate of 92%. It was noted that
it was the employer's responsibility to submit accurate and timely information
to officers at the Pensions Unit. It was reported that the quality of the data
this year was acceptable at first glance, and that every employer had met the
time requirements. In response to a
question regarding employers' risk profiles, the Head of Finance Department
noted that the employers had stability and that new employers / companies to
the fund now had guarantees. Gratitude was expressed for the information and it was observed,
considering the timetable, that the valuation process was evidently a year's
worth of work RESOLVED to accept the
information. |
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2019 VALUATION ASSUMPTIONS To consider the Head
of Finance’s Report Additional documents: Minutes: The Head of
Finance Department submitted a report explaining and scrutinising projections.
It was noted that the Pensions Committee had considered and approved
projections in the Executive Summary in order to set funding targets for the
Fund's current triennial valuation as on 31 March 2019. The full details of the
projections were referred to in a report received from the Fund's Actuary, and
included as an appendix to the report. It was reported that only one substantial change was made to the projections,
namely that to salary increases. Following advice from Hymans, it was decided
to amend the figure to CPI +0.3% that would respond to higher short term salary
increase expectations, thus reflecting recent trends. It was reiterated that
the projections would be noted in the review for the valuation and that there
would be discussions and professional advice sought before amending any future
projections. A formal consultation would be held with the employer on the projections
along with other amendments to the Funding Strategy Statement of the 2019
valuation later on in the year. An observation was made to the effect that longevity had now reached a
stable level and that there could be a need to review the methodology. RESOLVED to accept the
information. |
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LOW CARBON EQUITY INVESTMENT To consider the
Head of Finance’s Report Additional documents: Minutes: The Head of Finance Department submitted a report outlining the
Committee's decision
(29
July 2019) to confirm low carbon investment. It was decided to invest 12% of
the pension fund's total in the BlackRock Global Low Carbon equity fund. As
BlackRock funds were part of the 2016 passive equity procurement process held
by the Wales Pension Funds, it was explained that a formal procurement process
would be unnecessary. It was
explained that Gwynedd Pension Fund had chosen to invest in a fund managed by
BlackRock to track the MSCI Low Carbon Target Index. This fund would reduce exposure to companies
who emitted carbon by tracking the MSCI Global Index, reducing carbon exposure by
up to 80%, rather than dis-investing randomly. It was noted that the MSCI Low
Carbon Index was a benchmark for investors who wished to manage possible risks
associated with the transformation towards a low carbon economy. The index aimed at a tracking error target of
0.3% (30 basis points) in reducing the carbon exposure. In placing a greater emphasis on companies
that had low carbon emissions (compared to sales) and companies that had the
potential for low carbon emissions (per dollar of capital on the stock market),
the index reflected lower carbon exposure than those of the wider market. It was
reiterated that this investment was responsible and responded to the Council's
requirements and the investment principles of the Pensions Committee. In response to a
question regarding the cost of transfer fees, the Head of Finance Department
noted that there would be some transitional costs, but that this would not be a
substantial sum in the context of the value of the investment; and that the
costs would level out as the investment was one for the long term. The Board noted
that they were supportive of the Pensions Committee's decision to invest in low
carbon equity. With daily attention given by the media to the consideration of
climate and environmental matters by World Governments, it was noted that this
was both a wise and timely decision. It was added that economic, social and
governance elements were also making gradual progress, and that suitable
investment vehicles to be considered for these elements in the future would be
welcomed. RESOLVED to accept the information. |
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WALES PENSION PARTNERSHIP UPDATE To receive a verbal
update from the Head of Finance on recent developments Minutes: The Head of
Finance Department gave an update and displayed the Wales Pensions
Partnership's new website. It was reported that the website had been launched
in September 2019 and that it included initial information on the Partnership's
work. It was explained
that, by the start of 2020, around 82% of Gwynedd's fund would be transferred
to Wales Pensions Partnership funds, which signified encouraging progress in
comparison with many English pools. He added that there was good collaboration
amongst Partnership members. Attention was
drawn to a wish to have representation of the Pension Board on the
Partnership's Joint Committee. The Head of Finance Department suggested that
there was already an appropriate number of Members and officers on the Joint
Committee, and that engagement meetings were held for Pension Board Chairs. It
was suggested that this arrangement was for the time being sufficient to ensure
that the Pension Boards and scheme members had the opportunity to contribute
and present their opinions. A request was made
for the details of the website to be shared with Members. Gratitude was expressed for the information. |