By Andrew Watson
Speaker at Climate Talks
Member of ELCAN, Friends of the Earth East Lothian, and Divest Lothian
Note: The East Lothian Climate Hub is not qualified to give financial advice. You should seek independent and qualified advice before making major financial decisions.
IS YOUR PENSION FUELLING CLIMATE DESTRUCTION?
UK pension schemes currently invest £88 billion in fossil fuel companies – that’s an average of £3,000 per pension holder. And contrary to the science telling us we must urgently stop burning fossil fuels, those companies, from BP and Shell to TotalEnergies and Equinor, are not just continuing to produce oil and gas, but are actively expanding their operations.
FOSSIL FUEL DIVESTMENT
If you through your pension are an unwitting investor in climate breakdown, you may want to consider divesting; to sell your investments in fossil fuel companies. The aim is to bring about a managed phasing out of fossil fuels in such a way that not only do the lights stay on, but that those working in the industry are supported to transition into alternative jobs. Better yet, it means reinvesting those funds in businesses working towards a sustainable future.
Divesting your pension could be the most powerful weapon you have against climate change.
According to MakeMyMoneyMatter.co.uk, “Making your pension green is 21x more powerful at cutting your carbon than giving up flying, going veggie, and switching energy providers.”
THE ENVIRONMENTAL CASE FOR DIVESTMENT
We desperately need to phase out fossil fuel use. Burning even our current reserves of coal, gas, and oil will push global warming far beyond a safe temperature. Yet, the published goal of the fossil fuel industry is to aggressively pursue new gas and oil projects, speeding us ever faster towards catastrophe.
THE FINANCIAL CASE FOR DIVESTMENT
An investment in fossil fuels is increasingly recognised as a risky investment. The value of a fossil fuel company is a measure of its reserves and its infrastructure. However, if we are to meet our climate goals, those reserves must remain in the ground, leaving them – along with the infrastructure serving them, and along with your investment – worthless.
THE MORAL CASE FOR DIVESTMENT
It’s not just that fossil fuels are destroying the climate. The industry is also linked to the trampling of human rights, deforestation and biodiversity loss, pollution, the devastation of local economies, millions of premature deaths, the murder of activists and trade unionists, corruption, repressive regimes, geopolitical tensions and war.
HOW TO DIVEST
If you are interested in divesting, you could first contact your pension provider for details of exactly where your pension is invested. This might take some digging, but you’re entitled to know. If you are then not happy, you may want to seek advice about switching.
Do consider getting independent advice before making any major change, especially if you have a workplace pension. If you stand to incur an exit charge or might lose other benefits, your best bet might be to stay with your current provider and push them to divest.
For more information, and to contact your pension provider, go to www.MakeMyMoneyMatter.co.uk.
There’s also a good explainer video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GmumgriuGfU
