Faith Ward, chief responsible investment officer of the Brunel Pension Partnership, has been appointed to the strategic steering committee of the UK’s Transition Finance Council.

The Transition Finance Council was established on the recommendation of a government-commissioned transition finance market review, which published its findings in October.

Co-launched by the City of London Corporation and the UK government, the Council has been given the objective of developing the UK into the leading global hub for transition finance.

Ward, who is also chair of the Institutional Investors Group on Climate Change (IIGCC), has also been named as chair of the Council’s working group on scaling transition finance, which is due to “examine real-world applications, identify barriers, and develop solutions, including through dialogue with government and regulators”.

“I am excited by the opportunity that the new Council provides to deliver tangible progress in enabling transition finance for the UK, and globally,” said Ward.

Faith Ward

Faith Ward is also chair of the Institutional Investors Group on Climate Change

“While there has been progress in many areas of transition finance, enormous untapped potential remains that could be unlocked with improved clarity and consistency.

“This requires a joined-up approach to policy and regulation, significant capacity-building, and close coordination with key stakeholders in finance and government.”

Similarly, Ward added that another working group is to focus on “establishing and embedding the parameters of credible transition finance”. This will be chaired by Vanessa Havard-Williams, who led the transition finance market review.

The other working group will be chaired by former energy minister Chris Skidmore and will focus on long-term policy and sector pathways for real economy transition.

Alok Sharma, who served as president of COP26 in Glasgow, is the chair of the Transition Finance Council, and Irem Yerdelen, the City of London Corporation’s lead member for sustainable finance, is deputy chair.

The full strategic steering committee is still being finalised.

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