A better future – continuing our support for a sustainable recovery

09 June 2020

Attention towards the UK’s economic recovery from COVID-19 is growing at pace – and there are increasing calls to ensure this recovery happens in a way that’s sustainable for people and our planet.

Keith Skeoch, our Chief Executive Officer, has become a signatory to an open letter to the Prime Minister – entitled 'Building a better future through the COVID-19 recovery programmes' – which calls on the UK Government to ensure that the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are reflected in the UK’s recovery strategy. The signatories include leaders from organisations across all sectors – from businesses and trade organisations to academia and the third sector.

The SDGs aim to provide a framework for a better and more resilient future, with the aim of enabling all people to live a good life on a healthy planet. As a signatory to the UN Global Compact, our business is committed to continue playing its part in achieving these goals. The letter – an initiative driven by the UN Global Compact Network UK and UKSSD – asks the Government to use the SDGs to aid their decision-making, their work across departments, and their design of coherent recovery programmes.

Our involvement follows our recent support for an additional initiative that encourages the UK Government to align its recovery efforts with its net-zero emissions targets.

Keith Skeoch commented:

 

“The SDGs offer a real vision for a better future through addressing some of the world’s biggest environmental and societal challenges, from tackling inequality to taking action on climate change. While the task ahead is significant, so is the opportunity to deliver positive change.

 

Recent events have shown the impact we can have when we work together across business, government, charity and academia. I believe asset managers have an important role to play – in particular, by allocating capital responsibly and actively engaging with companies to help address the planet’s long-term problems. By working together now, we can build a more resilient, green economy and make a difference to society for generations to come.”