Top government official confirmed for northern treasury summit

A top government local finance official has been lined up to update the sector on treasury and capital policy at next March’s Room 151 Northern Local Government Treasurers Investment Forum (LATIF North).

Matt Hemsley, head of sustainability accounting and capital at the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, will talk to delegates and answer their questions at the event, being held in Manchester.

The event will be the third LATIF North, which previous delegates have described as “definitely one of the best conferences of the year” and “exceptionally good”.

Room 151 publisher Peter Findlay said: “The continuing success of LATIF North demonstrates the appetite to discuss treasury issues as they affect the north of England and Scotland.

“It is a fantastic opportunity delegates to gather and swap experiences on how the latest economic and policy developments affect their local authority.”

A panel session will take an in-depth look at the state of the UK economy following this year’s general election and the ongoing shape of Brexit.

James Bevan, chief investment officer at investment manager, and main conference sponsor, CCLA will give his thoughts, along with Arnab Das, global market strategist at another conference sponsor, Invesco.

Another session will explore the impact of the recent rise in Public Works Loan Board borrowing rates, which sent a shock through the sector in October.

Panellists for this session will include Innes Edwards, treasury manager at Edinburgh City Council, Mike Jensen, director of investments at Lancashire County Council and Caroline Ly, director of corporate finance – capital & debt advisory at Ernst & Young.

Also on the aganda is a discussion of Environmental, Social and Governance issues on pension fund investing.

A dedicated Q&A session for treasurers will cover questions including:

• Will the CIPFA Prudential Property Investment guidance have an impact on the commercial agenda?
• How much certainty can treasurers build into their MTFP in respect of RSG, business rates and New Homes Bonus?
• Will local authorities be at the heart of an increase in house building? If so, via the HRA or a greater number of LA housing companies?

The conference will also see the launch of the Room 151 Current Affairs Survey 2020, which will gauge finance officer sentiment on the burning issues of the day.

LATIF North is exclusively open to local government treasury managers and finance directors.

There is no charge for attending. 

Book your place for LATIF North 2020

In addition to CCLA and Invesco and Federated Investors will also be sponsoring the upcoming LATIF North.

The Room151 Weekly Newsletter covers local government treasury and pension investment, funding, development, resources and technical finance. Register here. 

The LGPS Quarterly Briefing focuses purely on pension fund investment. Register here.