Practical, common-sense solutions to current pensions issues will be the focus of the 2012 LCP Annual Pensions Conference, being held in London tomorrow (September 19).
After a year that has seen gilt yields plumb new depths, pension scheme deficits continue to increase, a new code of practice that will change the way companies run pension incentive exercises and with the prospect of auto-enrolment, the pensions world continues to face yet more change.
The conference brings together speakers from across the industry to help pension scheme trustees and sponsors understand what the latest changes mean for them under the title "a down-to-earth approach to pensions strategy". Guest speakers Richard Urwin, managing director at BlackRock and Mark Atkinson, partner at CMS Cameron McKenna will join a panel of LCP experts and give perspectives from the fund management and legal industries.
Issues to be covered at the conference include:
• Meeting the challenge - funding strategies: Pension scheme deficits have come under the spotlight again, as record low gilt yields drive deficits higher. How much attention should be paid to a deficit figure which, after all, is just a snapshot at a point in time?
• Gilts: a wolf in sheep's clothing?: Expectations of low economic growth, accommodative monetary and fiscal policies and concerns over the Eurozone crisis have seen the price of gilts, the natural matching asset, and most other safe haven assets reach all-time highs. Is it still appropriate for trustees and sponsors of pension schemes to continue to hold gilts and what are the different approaches that can be used to generate returns in the current environment?
• European Pensions Directive - take 2: What is the current direction of travel of IORP II and what are the possible outcomes and likely consequences for UK pension schemes?
Four case studies will highlight practical experiences and real-world examples of how trustees and employers are dealing with today's pensions challenges. They will include:
• The Uniq buy-out
• Buy-out from an insurers' perspective
• Devising an auto-enrolment strategy
• Liability management exercises
The conference will be chaired by Bob Scott, LCP's senior partner and author of LCP's annual Accounting for Pensions report, now in its 19th year.
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