Scottish Widows is reaffirming its support for the Government’s goal of revising the Solvency II regulations in order to increase funds for the infrastructure required for the UK to make the transition to a greener future.
Today, Scottish Widows chief investment officer Craig Thornton will meet with City Minister Andrew Griffith MP to go over the changes and opportunities of the reforms as well as their implementation and effects. The discussion will take place at Scottish Widows’ Edinburgh headquarters.
The goal of the reforms is to restructure the insurance industry’s prudential regulations in a way that benefits the UK market. The present Solvency II framework can make it difficult to invest in long-term, illiquid assets, which is necessary for a market where the insurance industry holds substantial longevity liabilities.
Scottish Widows agreed with the ABI that the Chancellor’s Autumn Statement proposals should be modified to better assist the UK’s goals for green infrastructure while providing high levels of policyholder protection. Additionally, it has acknowledged that the proposed Solvency II reforms, which the ABI has predicted will enable, will enable an additional £100 billion to be invested in productive finance over the next ten years.
Thornton says: “By working together with the insurance industry, the Government and the Prudential Regulation Authority will now be able to unlock a significant investment boost for the UK economy while continuing to help people secure their financial futures.
“Scottish Widows has already invested around £3bn in social housing projects across the UK, however, we will be able to invest billions more in projects which are vital to the growth of the economy and the transition to net zero.
“We’re looking forward to moving on to the next stage of the reform process at pace, which includes working with the Government to accelerate the vital work of identifying suitable investment opportunities in the UK which will benefit from the recently announced changes.”
