Apart from a net-zero portfolio, Royal London has also pledged to develop climate solutions to enable its customers to directly invest in the low carbon transition
Royal London has committed to achieving a minimum 50% reduction in CO2 emissions by 2030 and net zero by 2050 across all investments.
The provider said customer money could play a “significant part” in helping society transition to a sustainable world and that customer research had shown care about climate change as a key theme.
Apart from a net-zero portfolio, Royal London has also pledged to develop climate solutions to enable its customers to directly invest in the low carbon transition and is calling on regulators to consider climate change alongside product outcomes and the government to “promote policies that reward those who act responsibly and do the right thing”.
The provider also said it has plans to work with others “to provoke action at the scale and pace needed” to overcome the challenges.
Make My Money Matter (MMMM) chief executive Tony Burdon said: Last week, MMMM wrote to leading pension providers calling for ambitious, robust net zero commitments. We’re delighted that Royal London has responded to this call, and announced a new climate approach which ensures that millions of UK pensions will be helping tackle the climate emergency, rather than fuelling the fire.
Royal London group chief executive Barry O’Dwyer added: Our population is living longer, and, unlike previous generations, we must take responsibility for funding our later lives ourselves. This coincides with a climate crisis that is damaging the world into which we will all retire.
He continued: In combination, these ultimately put the standard of living we have come to expect in jeopardy; this is not the time to be passive. The biggest way Royal London can make a difference in the fight against climate change is through an active investment approach. We are engaging with the largest carbon emitters in our investment portfolio to influence their behaviours.
Royal London is already part of the Net Zero Asset Management Initiative as well as the Institutional Investors Group on Climate Change’s Net Zero Asset Owner initiative.
We all want to spend our lives in a climate where our homes aren’t put at risk by extreme weather events and we have access to sustainable sources of food, O’Dwyer said. Customers’ money must be invested responsibly in a way that supports the changes needed to protect the planet.