Liontrust Responsible Capitalism Report 2024 - Flipbook - Page 91
Engagement on other ESG-related topics
During the year, GFT engaged holdings on other ESG-related topics, including:
Company
What the
group does
Date
Discussion
topic(s)
Discussion summary
Impact on investment
decision (if any)
AJ Bell
Provides
online
investment
platforms,
stockbroker
services
October
2023
Operational
With cyber security, AJ Bell has engaged with specialist third
resilience; net parties to understand its own vulnerabilities. Twice a year, it
zero
undertakes a cyber deep dive with its board. In terms of carbon,
AJ Bell is in the process of considering targets for carbon
reduction and expects to establish these in 2024.
This engagement
helped reinforce
GFT’s conviction and
resiliency scores of 4
(above average) and 5
(excellent), respectively.
GSK
British
pharmaceutical
and biotech
company
May 2023
Strategic
priorities;
innovation
pipeline;
carbon
reduction;
diversity and
inclusion
GSK stated that its strategic priorities are: access to medicines,
global health, diversity and inclusion (particularly in clinical
trials), environmental sustainability, product governance and
technical standards. GSK reports annually against these six
areas. In terms of innovation priorities, GSK is focused on its
long-acting innovation pipeline for HIV, making progress on
asthma, new meningitis products, and strengthening its portfolio
in infectious diseases. With carbon, GSK aims to achieve an
80% carbon reduction by 2030 across all scopes. The group
is investing R&D to reduce the scope 3 carbon emissions of its
inhalers. GSK has supplier standards and works with suppliers
to help them reduce their carbon footprint as well. In terms of
DEI, GSK thinks about diversity and inclusion beyond its own
workforce, including in clinical trials and using the group’s
influence as purchasers.
This engagement
helped reinforce the
team’s conviction in
GSK.
Hargreaves
Lansdown
(“HL”)
British
financial
services
company
October
2023
Operational
resilience
HL has undertaken external benchmarking assessments of its
cyber security controls and has annual security testing on its
cyber systems which is accredited by a third party vendor.
This engagement
helped the team keep
the conviction score
and resiliency score at
3 (average).
Mondi
Produces
packaging
and paper
March 2023
EU regulation
on deforestation;
consumers’
switch from
plastics to
paper
Mondi sees the EU’s mandatory due diligence rule for EU-based
organisations that import/export timber and printed paper as an
opportunity given that the group’s already responsibly sources its
fibre. Mondi is also well positioned to benefit from consumers’
switch from plastics to paper. The group makes fully recyclable
coatings and utilises significant collaboration across the whole
supply chain through its vertical integration.
This engagement
helped reinforce the
team’s conviction in
Mondi.
ADHERENCE TO LIONTRUST’S CONTROVERSIAL
WEAPONS POLICY
• GFT adheres to this policy which excludes investment in
companies with involvement in cluster munitions, anti-personnel
land mines, biological weapons and/or chemical weapons.
Liontrust’s controversial weapons policy can be found on this
web page: https://www.liontrust.co.uk/about-us/corporatesustainability/a-responsible-investor
Responsible Capitalism Report 2023 - 91