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SIO welcomes proposals for pension fund disclosure
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The Social Investment Organization supports proposals from the Canadian Democracy and Corporate Accountability Commission calling for regulations requiring pension funds to disclose their social investment policies. The Commission, which reported Jan. 30, endorsed proposals made by the social investment community calling for regulations that would require pension funds to disclose the extent to which they take into account social and environmental factors into their investment decision-making. These regulations would echo recent rules put into place in the United Kingdom, Germany and Australia. "The Social Investment Organization is pleased that the Commission has called for greater transparency when it comes to the investment savings of millions of Canadians through their pension funds," said SIO Executive Director Eugene Ellmen. "These proposals would not force pension funds to adopt social investment policies, but they would require them to disclose their social investment policies to their plan members and the public." The Commission, sponsored by Arthur Kroeger College of Public Affairs at Carleton University with funding from Atkinson Foundation, Columbia Foundation and Endswell Foundation, set out to make recommendations to government, business and the civil society sector on how to create greater corporate accountability. The Commission was co-chaired by Avie Bennett, Chair of McClelland and Stewart Publishers and Ed Broadbent, former leader of the NDP. Among the recommendations, the report calls for regulations to create a set of corporate social responsibility (CSR) guidelines requiring mandatory social and environmental reporting by corporations. In addition, pension funds would be required to disclose whether their investment policies take into account the CSR guidelines. The report cites polling data it commissioned suggesting that 51 per cent of Canadians want their pension plans to invest in companies with a good record on social responsibility, while only 36 per cent want their plans restricted to companies making the highest profits. "Knowing whether pension funds take CSR into account will help investors make decisions about how to manage such funds," said the report. The report makes further recommendations with regard to socially responsible investment:
"These recommendations with regard to pension funds are very consistent with recent policy initiatives in the UK, Europe and Australia," Ellmen said. "They reflect the growing concern by pension plan members and the general public that these large capital pools should be invested in a way that is transparent on the issue of corporate responsibility." For more information, visit the Canadian Democracy and Corporate Accountability Commission on-line at www.corporate-accountability.ca
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