Tesco pension schemes commit to 2050 net zero target
Tesco yesterday announced that its Tesco Plc Pension Scheme and Tesco Retirement Savings Plan will aim for their investments to deliver net zero emissions by no later than 2050.
The two pension schemes – which have combined assets of £24bn and a membership of 345,000 – plan to regularly review all investments to ensure pension monies are growing as well as staying on track to achieve net zero.
In addition, they have pledged to use their scale and influence to encourage companies they invest in to reduce carbon emissions over time, and to set targets and milestones en route to achieving net zero emissions 2050.
Tesco Pension Fund chair Ruston Smith said the schemes of the supermarket chain were setting the goal as evidence proved responsible companies are likely to perform better in the long term.
“By investing responsibly, we can continue to deliver on our top priority of helping members’ money grow as much as possible and align our investments more closely to hat we believe is important to Tesco colleagues,” he said.
It comes after Tesco partnered with online platform Tumelo to give pension scheme members access to details on which companies their money is invested in and the option to provide views on how they are run.
Both Tesco funds yesterday also signed up to the UN Principles for Responsible Investing, joined the Institutional Investors Group on Climate Change, and become signatories of the Paris-aligned Net Zero Asset Owner initiative. The funds are also members of of ethical pensions campaign Make My Money Matter.
The moves were welcomed by Make My Money Matter founder Richard Curtis, who said: “Our pensions are powerful. While they’re securing healthy returns for us, they can also secure a better future for the planet. It’s brilliant that Tesco has taken further critical steps to ensure their staff have pensions to be proud of.”
