• YOUR correspondent Neil Devlin writes that Islington Council’s pension fund invests in the arms trade… which kills children, (Look hard at the arms trade and pension funds, October 29).

That’s quite an exaggeration. Islington pension fund, which is worth around £1.6billion, holds shares in five aerospace and engineering companies which could be considered as defence-related.

These represent just 0.15 per cent of the pension fund’s total value. The five shareholdings are in Meggitt, Rolls-Royce, Smiths Industries, Weir Group and BAE Systems.

None of these firms are specifically “arms” manufacturers, they are general engineering firms supplying components for vehicles, aircraft and vessels, some of which have military use.

Only BAE, which employs 35,000 UK workers, has a significant role manufacturing military aircraft, vehicles and vessels.

Islington is one of many local authorities that combine to engage, lobby, and persuade companies to reduce their trade in controversial and ethically compromised products.

We have indeed participated in challenges to BAE Systems about military equipment that might be supplied to repressive regimes and the risk of military equipment being used against civilians.

Islington’s pension fund owns these shareholdings because our UK equities are held in a managed “tracker index fund” which means we automatically have holdings in all the companies within that index.

We are shortly going to review that index and reduce the amount of UK equities we hold. As part of the review, the reputational risk to the fund of having controversial investments will be a factor considered as we make that change.

Finally it should be remembered that the ultimate responsibility for allowing the export of any UK manufactured product for military use is with the UK government. All such exports require a licence.

CLLR PAUL CONVERY
Chair Islington Pension Fund Sub-committee