Long-delayed vote will be 'moment of truth' for County Council on climate change

East Sussex Pension Fund to finally vote on fossil fuel divestment after year-long delay

Wednesday 25 September, 10am, County Hall, Lewes: The East Sussex Pension Fund will finally vote on proposals that it stop investing in the giant fossil fuel companies that are driving the climate crisis, at a meeting of its five-person decision-making body (the East Sussex Pension Committee) this Wednesday (25 September) [2].

Voting on the proposals, which were first made at the 19 September 2023 Pension Committee meeting [3], has been delayed for over a year pending further analysis by the Fund’s officers and advisors. Divest East Sussex is encouraging members of the public to attend Wednesday's meeting in order to 'Witness the Vote', which it says will be a 'moment of truth' for the Fund.

The East Sussex Pension Fund, which covers Brighton & Hove as well as East Sussex, is administered by East Sussex County Council (ESCC). It currently has millions of pounds of local people’s pension monies invested in oil and gas companies like Shell and BP [4].

A long list of organisations and individuals have called on the Fund to divest from fossil fuels, including: Bexhill Town Council, Brighton & Hove City Council, Hastings Borough Council, Lewes District and Town Councils, Peacehaven Town Council, Rother District Council, Saleshurst & Robertsbridge Parish Council, and UNISON [5].

Pension Fund member Sarah Hazlehurst said: 'After more than ten years of resisting fossil fuel divestment – and with scientists issuing ever direr warnings about the need for real action [6] – this will be a moment of truth for East Sussex County Council. The science tells us that almost one-fifth of existing oil and gas fields will have to be shut down, even if no new fields are developed and  all coal extraction stops tomorrow [7]. And yet the fossil fuel system continues to expand. This is madness and to stop it institutions like the East Sussex Pension Fund need to stop providing cover for the companies that are pressing ahead with this expansion: the Shells, the BPs and the Conocco Phillips. It's time to for the Fund to start taking the climate crisis seriously, stop its endless foot-dragging, and vote now to stop investing in fossil fuels.’

A spokesperson for The East Sussex Pension Fund said: “The Fund has a legal duty to ensure it can pay pensions to its 85,000 members when they reach pensionable age.  Any changes to investments present significant risks to the Fund’s ability to pay money out.

It is, therefore, vital that any motion put forward by members are presented with full information about financial and legal implications and professional advice before any decision is made.

“East Sussex Pension Fund does not invest directly in any company or asset but sets a strategy and invests through third party investment managers into pooled investments. The Fund is required to invest via a pool who selects the investment managers that deliver the strategy set by the Fund. Although it is for the investment manager to manage risk, the strategy is reviewed annually and each manager has an annual Environmental Social and Governance assessment and Climate score, with an action plan for improvement. Climate-related risks and objectives are taken into account in all parts of the investment strategy.

“Currently, just 0.4 per cent of the £4.68bn fund is invested in companies and assets that have links to fossil fuel extraction. Despite the level of exposure, divesting could cost the fund significantly, as it would need to sell the whole portfolio managed by an investment manager, as it cannot sell a specific company or asset in a pooled investment. The costs and regulatory environment must be taken into account when proposals are discussed at the Pension Committee meeting.”