M&S, Co-op and Royal Mail pension schemes announce net-zero targets

The M&S Pension Scheme, the Co-op pension scheme ‘Pace’, and the Royal Mail Pension Plan have committed to halving the emissions of their investments by 2030 at the latest, in line with the Paris Climate Agreement.

The M&S Pension Scheme made the most ambitious pledge, aiming to reach net zero across its portfolio by 2040, whilst Royal Mail Pension Plan and Pace have committed to Paris-aligned 2050 targets.

The commitment, representing than £30bn of UK pension money, has been highlighted as demonstration that older defined benefit (DB) pension schemes can make robust net-zero commitments and form credible climate transition plans, prompting calls for other DB schemes to follow suit.

Indeed, Make My Money Matter co-founder, Richard Curtis, emphasised that whilst older schemes may face additional challenges in reaching net zero, “that doesn’t mean they can’t do it”.

He continued: “Over the past year, we have woken savers up to the power of their pension and seen more than £1.2trn committed to tackling the climate crisis. However, there is still a long way to go and the hard work starts now.

“M&S, Royal Mail and Co-op are showing the rest of the sector that it can be done. We are calling on all remaining schemes to follow in their footsteps so that no pension holder is forced to invest in the very industries that will destroy our future.”

Adding to this, M&S Pension Scheme chief investment officer and head of M&S Pension Trust, Simon Lee, emphasised that whilst there has been progress on this issue, “as the climate emergency escalates, we all need to do more“.

He stated: “With over 100,000 members, the M&S Pension Scheme must provide security to its members and their beneficiaries for many years to come. The trustee firmly believes investing responsibly supports this duty, reducing risk and protecting the scheme over the long term.

“The trustee has chosen an ambitious 2040 net-zero target because it can and should strive to achieve better outcomes for everyone.

“A challenging journey lies ahead and it’s not something we can do alone, governments, financial institutions, our advisers and investment managers will need to play their part to make this a reality.”

Royal Mail Pension Plan chief executive officer, Richard Law-Deeks, also emphasised the need for “urgent and decisive action” to tackle the climate crisis, agreeing however, that this is “going to be a challenging journey”.

“It will take time and considerable effort to make the right adjustments, especially in the assets where methodologies for measuring carbon are still emerging, including and most importantly for us, UK gilts,” he explained.

“Like many asset owners around the world, achieving our ambition is highly dependent on the actions of others and we are committed to engaging constructively and collaboratively on this topic across the diverse range of asset classes in which we invest.”