Comparative Study of U.K. and Canadian Pension Fund Transparency Practices David Wheeler Jane Thomson (York University) Thérèse Woodward Priti Shokeen (Kingston University, U.K.) May 2004

This report was commissioned by Canada’s National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy to explore how pension fund transparency practices with respect to social, environmental and ethical (SEE) issues in the United Kingdom differ from those in Canada.

In particular, we address the antecedents and impact of U.K. policies mandating the inclusion of a fund’s approach to SEE issues in its statement of investment principles (SIP). And we explore the possible relationship between reforms to the 1995 Pensions Act and the subsequent growth of socially responsible investment (SRI or RI) in the U.K.

We examine what such reforms might require in Canada and recommend how such reforms might be pursued. Finally, we suggest further areas for research in order to determine the case (or the absence of a case) for such reforms.

Executive Summary »