Issue - meetings

27.1     The Board considered a report by the Chief Finance Officer introduced by Dave Kellond, Governance and Compliance Manager, together with exempt information contained in a later agenda item.

27.2     The following points were highlighted to the Board:

1)    Governance changes following the Government’s ‘Fit for Future’ Consultation include appointment of a senior officer, policies and strategies which will need to be in place, training of Pension Committee members and requirement for an independent governance review every 3 years.

2)    Following the submissions of Local Government Pension Scheme responses on the Government’s consultation on inheritance tax provisions, there have been some significant changes including exclusion of death in service benefits from the value of an individual’s estate for inheritance tax purposes.

3)    The Fund’s response to the Government’s access and fairness consultation which relates to a number of changes to administrative processes.

4)    The Governance and Compliance Statement has been reviewed and updated in light of recent legislative updates however a full review of the statement is expected to be undertaken following the release of new legislation around investment pooling reforms.

27.3     The Board discussed the expected timeframe for the laying of the new legislation regarding pension reforms.

27.4     The Board discussed the ‘Conflict of Interest’ section within the Governance and Compliance statement and noted the importance preventing conflicts of interest which are likely to prejudice a person’s exercise of their duties as a member of the Pension Board or Pension Committee.

27.5     The Board RESOLVED to:

1) Note the legal and regulatory changes together as set out in the report; and

2) Note the updated Governance and Compliance Statement as set out in Appendix 2 of the report.