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• Question by: Jenny Jones
• Meeting date: 17 January 2007

You can see from the questions that you have been asked today this is clearly a hot topic for us, and also, as politicians, we are very concerned about the issue of openness and the public knowing. So far this aspect has not been in the annual report, that is other information that I have. Is that not true? This is something you bring in to the annual report or is it simply that it is the first time you have had it so it has not happened yet?

• Question by: Mike Tuffrey
• Meeting date: 17 January 2007

Then I would like to conclude by pushing you to go further and to be public with people like us and, indeed, the 70,000 contributors so that in things that, as it were, I get, I can see you living out what you say your policy is, which is in the question, that you are progressively improving over time. Currently, I do not see that, and I think you should.

• Question by: Jenny Jones
• Meeting date: 17 January 2007

Judging from your answers, some of the information I have here that I was going to ask you about is completely erroneous, and I am going to be delighted if you tell me I am completely wrong. I would like to follow on from my colleague Mike's [Tuffrey] excellent line of questioning on openness. The feeling is generally that there is not as much openness from you as there are from other companies who have got the same sort of ethical and socially responsible stance. Can I clarify; you commented on the voting record, however my understanding is that although...

• Question by: Mike Tuffrey
• Meeting date: 17 January 2007

Thank you, and I welcome you and thank you for coming. This is an important topic if not one that the media particularly get very excited about. This question is all about socially responsible, ethical investment, and you will be aware that there is quite a debate as to whether there is a choice to be made between returns and ethics. My own view and what is behind this question is that if one is positively engaging - which is, I think, what your strategy is - then the two agendas come together, because the long term sustainable return is...

• Question by: Mike Tuffrey
• Meeting date: 17 January 2007

So if you have an approach or a strategy around engagement on these sorts of issues, is that in the public domain? Again, I could not find if you are engaging, which is the right strategy, what you are actually engaging on. And if you do not, will you promise to put that in the public domain?

• Question by: Murad Qureshi
• Meeting date: 17 January 2007

I just wanted to go into the whole area of possible exposure to hedge funds, and what that may mean for our pension holders. Both directly and indirectly, our exposure to the derivative market is of concern to a lot of people, given how much coverage it gets in the business pages.

• Question by: Mike Tuffrey
• Meeting date: 17 January 2007

I think that would be very helpful, and I think certainly we would like it. I suspect the pensioners and prospective pensioners, would also like it, because then they can at least get into a dialogue with you. The fourth thing that the Fair Pensions organisation asks for is to incorporate your approach to responsible investment into your investment mandates and into your fund manager selection and monitoring. Do I take it from what you said that you do do that?

• Question by: Murad Qureshi
• Meeting date: 17 January 2007

Which mirrors much of the behaviour of the hedge funds we have got in London, because I mean London has become a centre of all that. I am just concerned whether, to the extent of our exposure, both directly and indirectly, and to what extent that limits our ability to be ethical as well.

• Question by: Jennette Arnold OBE
• Meeting date: 17 January 2007

Can I then ask what is the current investment in, specifically, tobacco? I ask this because I raised this question in September 2005 with the Mayor, and his answer then was that he was of the opinion that LPFA was looking towards developing an ethical investment policy that would take account of this type of issue. Can I just add, you talked about employment and you said it was fine, if you like, to be investing in BAE (British Aerospace) because it gave us great employment. Is it fine to stay investing in tobacco companies that kill hundreds of thousands...

• Question by: Bob Blackman
• Meeting date: 17 January 2007

Were these rather bizarre people that want to limit your scope for investment to get their way, what would be the financial effect on the pension funds of a blanket ban, say, on any companies that were involved in any form of defence or arms trade, or tobacco for that matter?