UK – The £35bn (€50.2bn) BT Pension Scheme has appointed former Mercer Human Resource Consulting chief executive David Barford and former Prudential Group finance director Les Cullen as trustees to the fund.

Barford and Cullen succeed David Davies and Brian Birkenhead respectively. Davies stepped down after nine years at BTPS Trustees, and Birkenhead stepped down after eight years.

“Trustees are appointed for a three-year term at a time, and do not normally serve beyond nine years,” said BTPS Trustees secretary Colin Hartridge-Price.

Barford is not responsible for any particular area of scheme management, but he is an actuary and his input in that area will be particularly valuable, Hartridge-Price told IPE.

Meanwhile, Les Cullen will take over from Brian Birkenhead as the chair of the BTPS Audit Committee.

While Barford started at the scheme earlier this year, Cullen takes up his trustee role on May 1, said BT group head of pensions Kevin O’Boyle.

Reports today state Davies and Birkenhead were each paid approximately £25,000 annually in basic fees. O’Boyle was quoted as saying that Barford and Cullen’s fees would be adjusted in accordance with inflation and market trends.

In a brief interview with IPE, O’Boyle declined to comment on how much the new trustees would earn.

There are nine scheme trustees in total, headed by BTPS Trustees chairman Sir Tim Chessells.

“The Trustees meet at least 13 times a year, and additionally if necessary,” said Hartridge-Price.

“This is not a full-time post, but they are supported by a full-time secretariat of seven staff, plus about 90 full-time administrators. Neither David Barford, nor Les Cullen currently have full-time positions.”

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