News Roundup: New county treasurers’ president, SYPA credit mandate, LGPS legal framework…
0Burns takes up county treasurers’ role
Andrew Burns, director of finance and resources at Staffordshire County Council, has been appointed president of the Society of County Treasurers. He takes over from Geoff Dobson, head of strategic finance at Suffolk County Council, and is set to be replaced next year by the new vice-president, Margaret Lee, executive director for corporate services and customer operations at Essex County Council.
South Yorkshire seeks manager for £250m porfolio
South Yorkshire Pensions Authority has launched a tender for an investment manager for around £250m of its assets. The mandate is for a “buy and maintain” credit portfolio with an estimated value of around 5% of the scheme’s assets.
Law firms appointed to LGPS framework
Nine law firms have been appointed to two new frameworks aimed at reducing the cost of local government pension fund tendering exercises for councils in Scotland and England. The English framework was launched by a consortium of councils led by Norfolk County Council last year. In addition, eight law firms have been appointed to an investment services framework relating to benefits administration and governance.
London councils to vote on shared management structure
London boroughs Havering and Newham are set to agree a shared senior management structure next week to oversee a new shared back-office support service. A joint director of financial services will be the statutory section 151 officer for one authority, while a post either at the next tier up, or down will become section 151 officer at the other. Overall, the new arrangements are expected to save around 30% on existing management costs, according to a report by officers.
Grover takes control of London CIV
London Councils has appointed Hugh Grover as programme director for the emerging London Pension Collective Investment Vehicle. Grover told Room151 that the move was made because he had been spending an increasing amount of time overseeing the launch – which is scheduled for later in the year.
MPs: Councils ‘need to grasp off-payroll nettle’
HM Treasury should work with local government to improve transparency around the use of “off-payroll” arrangements, according to the Public Accounts Committee. A report on the Whole of Government Accounts said that central government already reports on the arrangements, where individuals are paid through a limited company. The committee also called for disclosure of government spending on a regional basis.
VAT rules on trade waste challenged
A recycling firm is challenging current rules which exempt councils from paying VAT on trade waste collections. North East firm Max Recycle has submitted an application for judicial review of current rules introduced by by Her Majesty’s Revenue & Customs in 2011. The firm says that the private sector is put at a competitive disadvantage by the exemption.
Liverpool transfers more land to JV
Liverpool City Council has agreed to transfer 2.95 acres of land to its local asset backed vehicle, Regeneration Liverpool. The joint venture with regeneration firm Sigma Inpartnership plans to build 56 affordable homes for rent as part of its Norris Green Village development, which has already provided 249 homes.
