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Central Finance Board of the Methodist Church

Ethics

Balancing
opportunity with integrity

The CFB is committed to seeking both superior returns and improving ethical standards.

Positive approach

We seek to improve the ethical profile of our portfolios by avoiding investments in particular businesses and encouraging better practices in others.

Company engagement

We view our investments as long term partnerships with company managements. We engage in constructive dialogue and practise active voting to challenge social, environmental and ethical considerations.

Integrated process

Ethical research integrated with financial analysis is key to our investment process. Fund managers are responsible for both financial and ethical analysis.

Clear policy

Comprehensive policy statements and position papers offer a reference for clients and a clear focus for fund managers.

Theological grounding

The Joint Advisory Committee on the Ethics of Investment provides a unique and robust mechanism for testing ethical investment decisions against theological principles.

Quarterly review
March 2020

Tax justice

In line with our engagement policy on tax justice, we engaged with two of our holdings in the quarter. We spoke to both MJ Gleeson and The Renewables Infrastructure Group about the Fair Tax Mark and encouraged them to seek accreditation. Both companies are considering the Fair Tax Mark and the implications of accreditation further as a result. We look forward to their responses. Separately, our voting policy responds to poor disclosure of management action on tax.

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Healthy markets

As part of the Healthy Markets initiative, which we support through ShareAction and Access to Nutrition, we attended a briefing on Supermarkets and the role that they play in tackling obesity. We are looking at new ways we can engage on this topic.

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Living wage

We engaged with Segro and DS Smith on the Real Living Wage. ShareAction had contacted both companies previously but they had not become accredited. We asked the companies about barriers to accreditation. Segro told us it paid at least the Real Living Wage to its employees, but to be accredited would also need its supply chain to be Real Living Wage compliant. We look forward to hearing back from DS Smith.

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More quarterly reviews

Voting

Reports

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March
2020
q4 2018 image
December
2019
q3 2019 image
September
2019
q2 2019 image
June
2019

Policy

Voting policy →

Serving
the Methodist Church

The Joint Advisory Committee on the Ethics of Investment (JACEI) provides CFB with advice on ethical issues and reports to the Methodist Conference on CFB compliance with the aims and objectives of the Church.

JACEI Report

The JACEI Report is produced for the Methodist Conference outlining its activities each year. An abbreviated version is also produced. Together they provide a comprehensive survey of the issues that we have addressed.

Joint Advisory Committee on the Ethics of Investment Report 2020 Joint Advisory Committee on the Ethics of Investment Report 2019 Joint Advisory Committee on the Ethics of Investment Short Report 2019

The Climate emergency

Evidence continues to mount that the Earth is warming and yet greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise.

Read the CFB and JACEI's response →

Working
in partnership

Carbon Disclosure Project Church Investors Group IIGCC, Institutional Investors Group on Climate Change Access to Medicines Index Access to Nutrition Index FAIRR ECCR, The Ecumenical Council for Corporate Responsibility EITI< The Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative Institutional Shareholder Services Sustainalytics TRUCOST UNPRI UKSIF Business Benchmark on Farm Animal Welfare, BBFAW

Active membership of global networks and partnerships provide a powerful united voice when dealing with multinational corporations and assist us and our clients to make informed ethical investment decisions.

The Stewardship Code

The CFB supports investor engagement with companies and is a signatory to the Financial Reporting Council's Stewardship Code

Montréal Pledge

The CFB is a signatory of the Montréal Carbon Pledge and is committed to a voluntary disclosure of the results. Read the CFB's Montréal Pledge Disclosure.

Have your say...

Our ethics are based on Methodist Church principles. We welcome feedback on an ethical issue. If you would like to discuss these please contact CFB Relationship Manager Christophe Borysiewicz on 020 7496 3630 or Chair of JACEI Stephen Wigley on 020 7467 5245.