Standard Life has become the first pension provider to invest in labelled funds under the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) Sustainability Disclosure Requirements (SDR).

The new labelling regime is designed to help investors and savers better understand a fund’s sustainability objectives, with Standard Life also planning to enhance its leading default investment solution, Sustainable Multi-Asset, by investing all equity and fixed income allocations through 8 PUTM funds that have adopted the ‘Sustainability Improvers’ label. Standard Life aims to implement this approach in early 2025, with over 75 per cent of Sustainable Multi Asset investments benefiting from a formal objective to align with the transition to Net Zero by 2050, while complying with the new regulatory threshold. Standard Life head of investment proposition development, Callum Stewart, commented: “The inclusion of sustainability labelled funds in our proposition is a significant milestone and underlines our commitment to improving outcomes for members as we lead our sector’s transition to more sustainable investment solutions."

M&G Investments has announced that it intends to adopt the ‘Sustainability Impact’ label for the M&G Positive Impact Fund in early 2025.

The fund will adopt this label under the FCA’s SDR regime as part of M&G’s sustainability and impact equity investment team, which has over £4 billion of assets under management. The fund is diversified across six main impact areas: climate action, pollution reduction, circular economy, health and wellbeing, education and innovation, and working conditions. M&G head of UK wholesale distribution, Alex Matcham, said: “Our adoption of this label marks an exciting milestone for the M&G Positive Impact Fund and reflects our commitment to sustainable and impact investing, enabling clients to compare funds with similar objectives for the first time easily. Over the long term, we expect to see growing demand from clients seeking a viable option for model portfolios with a focus on sustainability or impact and, more broadly, those who are looking for exposure to companies making a measurable positive difference, either to society or to the environment, while aiming to achieve strong investment returns.”

Aviva’s Pitheavlis site in Perth has completed the installation of a new wind turbine for renewable energy.

The turbine, combined with existing renewable infrastructure, will generate 3,000 megawatt hours of clean energy per year and is expected to create 100 per cent of the electricity demand, equivalent to the energy required to run 1,090 homes. Aviva Group CEO, Amanda Blanc DBE, and First Minister of Scotland, the Rt Hon John Swinney MSPB, officially opened the turbine today. Blanc said: “It’s fantastic to see the new wind turbine in operation. Our Perth site is now self-generating all its energy needs, bringing Aviva closer to our goal of being net zero by 2040.“

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