UK Labour party confirms details on National Wealth Fund taskforce

With less than a year to go until the next general election in the UK, Rachel Reeves, shadow chancellor of the opposition Labour Party has appointed two senior UK pension executives alongside other influential investors to lead the launch of a new National Wealth Fund.

David Vickers, CIO at Brunel Pension Partnership is set to join the taskforce alongside USS CEO Carol Young, Mark Carney and chief executives for Aviva and Barclays among others.

The taskforce is chaired by Rhian-Mari Thomas OBE, CEO of the Green Finance Institute (GFI), alternatives manager Brookfield will act as a specialist adviser.

While the taskforce itself is set up to be non-partisan, it ultimately aims to establish the blueprint for one of Labour’s key election campaign pledges, the establishment of a sovereign wealth fund aimed at funding the energy transition and creating green jobs.

While Labour has set aside £7.3bn in taxpayer money to fund the initiative, it aims to attract three times that amount in private investment.

“Brunel believes strongly in seeking to influence both the broader industry and policymakers,” said David Vickers. “GFI is an important partner for us and we are delighted to help them make independent policy recommendations to improve the UK’s approach to Net Zero.”

In an earlier interview with Room151, Vickers acknowledged that the government might see the LGPS as “an untapped resource of capital.”

“We have spoken to the government and said if you want money in infrastructure, then invite us to the table,” he added in a conversation held in 2022. But Vickers also noted that a crucial requirement for further infrastructure commitments was that the return profile added up.

Speaking with Net Zero Investor, he also described climate change as the biggest systemic risks investors were facing and that net zero alignment was in Brunel’s best financial interest.