A major local government pension fund has said it will look “as soon as possible” at divesting £22 million which campaigners have warned is invested in companies profiting from breaches of international law in Palestine.
A Palestinian flag flies at the protest outside Keynsham Civic Centre | Photo © John Wimperis
140,000 people from over 450 employers have paid into the £6 billion Avon Pension Fund, which administers the local government pension scheme for the former county of Avon.
But campaigners have warned that £10 million of this money is funding arms companies producing weapons being used by Israel in Gaza, and a further £12 million is invested in companies profiting from illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank.
Now the committee which runs the pension fund has said it has listened to people’s concerns and is already working to determine what action it takes.
Nick Dixon, Head of pensions, said: “That work is going to take a few weeks and we would propose that this committee considers the work and comes back as soon as possible in the new year to discuss it properly and reach a final decision.”
He was speaking at a meeting of the Avon Pension Fund Committee in Keynsham on 13th December, where his statement was met with applause from campaigners in the public gallery.
People had travelled from across the Avon area to protest against money they had paid into their pensions being used to fund breaches of international law and abuses of human rights.
Palestinian solidarity campaigns from Bath to Clevedon unfurled their banners outside the meeting, which was taking place in the large meeting room above the library at Keynsham Civic Centre.
Inside the meeting, seven campaigners addressed the committee as public speakers.
Dr Eldin Fahmy said: “Avon Pension Fund is funnelling taxpayers’ money into companies aiding or profiting from very serious breaches of international law.”
He added: “This is not just a political choice. It is a matter of good governance for the fund.”
Jane Samson listed General Dynamics, Northrupp Gruman, BAE Systems, and Boeing as arms companies the fund had invested in which she warned were manufacturing weapons being used by Israel in Gaza.
Ms Samson said she was “deeply troubled” by the investments.
Fay Pafford said she was in contact with a medical student in Gaza, Said, for whom she had run a GoFundMe to help him continue his studies online after his university was bombed.
She said: “He puts his life at risk every time he walks from his home to the hospital as Israeli drones regularly shoot and kill people walking in the street.”
She said: “Investments in Boeing Corporation provide Israel with the precision-guided bomb-kits it has used to kill three of Said’s medical colleagues and their families a few days ago. If you don’t want to be complicit in this, there is only one course of action open to you: divest.”
Mr Dixon told the public speakers: “Thank you all for your very moving statements, your personal stories, and your moral compassion that you bring to this issue.
“I think you have raised an issue of international importance but it is also an issue for the investments of the fund and their integrity.”
Chair of the committee, Paul Crossley (Southdown, Liberal Democrat) said that the process the committee had to follow would take time, but said: “We will be expediting that process as quickly as possible.”
He added: “From my own personal point of view, I have visited Palestine twice and have seen many of the issues that people have raised here.”
Speaking after the meeting, Ms Samson called Avon Pension Fund’s reaction “a positive response”.
She said: “It seemed that the Avon Pension Fund committee are taking this seriously and we are looking forward to continuing to work with them.”
Joanna Wright (Lambridge, Green), the councillor who led Bath & North East Somerset Council to pass a motion calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, also sits on the committee.
In a joint statement with Bristol City Council’s representative on the committee Fi Hance (Redland, Green), the two Green councillors said: “Like many others, we have been horrified by events in Gaza.
“The thought that [Bristol City Council] and [Bath & North East Somerset Council] could be complicit in the suffering of so many people is really distressing.
“We are therefore doing all we can to investigate how we can divest from companies that are linked to this ongoing genocide.”
But they warned that divesting may not be simple. Rather than having directly purchased shares in arms companies, the Avon Pension Fund’s investments are part of a passive equity pool, a financial product splitting money across thousands of companies, which the pension fund chose to invest in because of its climate credentials.
The Avon Pension Fund has made major efforts to be green and the pool was chosen because it is aligned with the 2015 Paris agreement on reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Ms Wright and Ms Hance said: “There are currently no products that are Paris-agreement-aligned and exclude aerospace and defence.
“As we understand it, to do this would require a new index to be set up at significant upfront cost, and other local authorities that have looked into this have faced significant legal barriers.
“We will continue to look over all options and work with campaigners, other local authorities and the APF to do whatever we can to make sure our investments are aligned with our values and in solidarity with the people of Gaza.”
The Avon Pension Fund Committee had been due to hold its next meeting in March. The committee will now set an earlier date in the new year for a special meeting to make a decision on divesting the £22 million involved in arms companies and the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
The fund is administered by Bath & North East Somerset Council, with representatives sitting on the committee from the three other local authorities of the former county of Avon: Bristol City Council, North Somerset Council, and South Gloucestershire Council.
John Wimperis, Local Democracy Reporter
