1,000 signatures reached
To: Avon Pension Fund
Petition for Avon Pension Fund to end investment in fossil fuels
1. Commit to divest entirely from fossil fuel stocks over a five year period, and to prioritise instead opportunities in emerging sectors such as energy efficiency, renewable energy, energy storage and smart energy systems.
2. The four local authorities which are the core members of the fund (Bristol City Council, Bath and North East Somerset Council, South Gloucestershire Council, and North Somerset Council) to use their full influence to push for fossil fuel divestment.
Why is this important?
As a fund member I am calling for divestment from this destructive industry and reinvestment of our money so it contributes to building a positive and sustainable future.
1. A climate emergency has been declared by local councils including Bristol, North Somerset South Gloucestershire and Bath & North East Somerset among over 100 local authorities in this country;
2. The Governor of the Bank of England has warned funds of the risk of ‘stranded assets’ if they continue to hold fossil fuel stocks;
3. The United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has given the world until 2030 to take action to reduce carbon emissions or face climate breakdown;
4. Around the world pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, investment houses and others have committed to divest from fossil fuels;
5. Avon Pension Fund now invests through the Brunel Pensions Partnership and has started to invest in a low carbon fund (though this fund does not exclude carbon intensive stocks);
6. This is the pension fund members’ money and fund members in local Unison branches have repeatedly resolved to seek this divestment. Unison has also called nationally and locally for divestment.
