ELECTRICITY
SUPPLY PENSION SCHEME
NOTICE OF
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING OF SCHEME MEMBERS
Notice is
hereby given that the twenty-fifth Annual General Meeting of the Members of the
Scheme will be held in the Conference Room at Freshfields offices at 165 Fleet
Street London EC4Y 1HS on Wednesday 10 October 2007 commencing at 1.30 pm.
Access to the Conference Room is on the
corner of Bouverie Street and Tudor Street, not from Fleet Street itself.
AGENDA
1.
Introduction and welcome.
2.
Confirm the Minutes of the twenty-fourth Annual
General Meeting held 11 October 2006.
3.
Consider matters arising out of the Minutes.
4.
Receive the Report of the Chair of the Scheme
Trustee, Electricity Pensions Trustee Limited (EPTL) in respect of the year
ended 31 March 2007.
5.
Receive a presentation on the Statement of Accounts
by the Head of Finance of Electricity Pensions Services Limited (EPSL).
6.
Receive a presentation on investment issues by
EPTLs investment adviser.
7.
Receive a presentation on changes in the roles of
the Scheme Trustee and Group Trustees within the Scheme.
8.
Consider matters arising out of the presentations.
9.
Receive the Statement of Accounts and Auditors
report thereon, for the year ended 31 March 2007 and the Report by the Scheme
Trustee for that year.
10.
Consider the resolution proposed by Mr David Laws
and seconded by Mr Geoff Blackman attached to this Agenda (see also the Notes
below).
11.
Consider the resolution proposed by Mr Jack Andrews
and seconded by Dr Neville Wrench attached to this Agenda (see also the Notes
below).
12.
Consider any other competent business.
Dated this seventh day
of September 2007.
A
Allen
Secretary of the Scheme
Secretarys Note Members resolutions voted
on and carried at the Scheme AGM do not have any power conferred upon them, and
cannot instruct EPTL, Group Trustees, Employers, or others involved in the
running of the Scheme.
If the above
resolution is carried at the Scheme AGM, Electricity Pensions Limited (EPL)
will be informed. EPL may or may not
decide to take any action in response to the resolution.
Resolution to be proposed by Mr David Laws and
seconded by Mr Geoff Blackman
This AGM of the Members of the ESPS is
perturbed at the continuing disparity in pension benefits between Company
Groups, and within Company Groups as a result of block transfers and Group
mergers. The most notable case is that
of the spouses benefit where the worst is 50% and the best is 66%. The ESPS has unified rules to govern the
Scheme; it is within the power of the Employers to amend the rules to improve
the benefits.
We
hereby press the Principal Employers to consider improving benefits when Group
funding returns to surplus.
Resolution to be proposed By
Mr Jack Andrews and seconded by
Dr Neville Wrench
Clause 26 of the ESPS relates to
Scheme-wide AGMs. It provides that An
Annual General Meeting of Members shall be held between 1 October and 31
December in every year
for the purpose of receiving the Statement of Accounts
and the Auditors Report thereon and the report of the Scheme Trustee on the
working of the Fund for the period covered by the statement of accounts and the
conduct of the general business of the Scheme
In recent years, less than 0.5% of Members
have attended this meeting because almost all the core business has now been
transferred to Group level. Many Groups
already hold informal annual meetings.
We believe that the original intention of
this Clause, which dates from 1983, was to ensure that, in good times and bad,
Members would have a regular annual opportunity to meet and question their Scheme
Officers and Auditors, to receive their Annual Report and be able to discuss
any matters of concern to them and to provide an additional channel of
communication. Group Trustees, who hold
up to £5 billion of assets, have important responsibilities for the payment of
benefits to members, and the security of members funds. Recent scheme failures outside the ESPS, and
the Maxwell/Daily Mirror issue, appear to make annual meetings, with the
opportunity for discussion, essential.
At least one Group has recently decided to
abandon the calling of informal AGMs and we feel that all Members should have
the chance to express their views about this before others do the same.
Accordingly,
we formally propose and call upon the Electricity Employers to extend Clause 26
to include each of the Groups, so as to ensure that the original purpose of the
Rule is fulfilled and that each Group is required to hold an Annual General
Members meeting on the same terms as Clause 26 presently requires for the
Scheme AGM.
Proxy Forms
Please
use the proxy forms to vote in support of our resolutions.
The best
advice is to appoint the chairman of the meeting to vote as per your proxy
instruction.
The forms must go back to: The Secretary
Electricity Supply
Pension Scheme
52 54 Southwark Street
London
SE1 1UN
by 1.30 pm on 8 October
2007. NOT the Association
FORM OF PROXY FOR USE AT THE ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
OF THE MEMBERS OF THE SCHEME ON 10 OCTOBER 2007
THIS FORM OF PROXY RELATES TO THE RESOLUTION PROPOSED
BY MR DAVID LAWS AND SECONDED BY MR GEOFF BLACKMAN (ITEM 10 ON THE AGENDA)
To: The Secretary
Electricity Supply Pension Scheme
52 54 Southwark Street
London SE1 1UN
PLEASE
COMPLETE IN BLOCK CAPITALS
I, ..
(insert full name in block capitals)
a Member of the Group of the Scheme
(insert name of the ESPS Group of which you are a
member)
hereby APPOINT (please tick one box only)
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the Chair of
the meeting |
OR
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(insert full name in block capitals) |
who is a Member of the
......................................................................................
Group of the Scheme and who will be attending the meeting
as my PROXY to vote for me on my behalf on the resolution which is item 10 on the Agenda of the meeting in the event of a poll being demanded and taken at the meeting.
I wish my vote to be cast (please tick one box only)
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for the resolution |
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against the
resolution |
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as my proxy thinks fit |
I acknowledge that my vote by proxy will be cast on the basis that I will not have heard the discussion about the resolution at the AGM.
In the event of a proxy vote being granted to a nominated member who is not present at the AGM, the proxy vote by default will be cast by the Chair of the meeting.
Signed...................................................... Dated...............................................
FORM OF PROXY FOR USE AT THE ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
OF THE MEMBERS OF THE SCHEME ON 10 OCTOBER 2007
THIS FORM OF PROXY RELATES TO THE RESOLUTION PROPOSED
BY MR JACK ANDREWS AND SECONDED BY DR NEVILLE WRENCH (ITEM 11 ON THE AGENDA)
To: The Secretary
Electricity Supply Pension Scheme
52 54 Southwark Street
London SE1 1UN
PLEASE
COMPLETE IN BLOCK CAPITALS
I, ..
(insert full name in block capitals)
a Member of the Group of the Scheme
(insert name of the ESPS Group of which you are a
member)
hereby APPOINT (please tick one box only)
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the Chair of
the meeting |
OR
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(insert full name in block capitals) |
who is a Member of the
......................................................................................
Group of the Scheme and who will be attending the meeting
as my PROXY to vote for me on my behalf on the resolution which is item 11 on the Agenda of the meeting in the event of a poll being demanded and taken at the meeting.
I wish my vote to be cast (please tick one box only)
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for the resolution |
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against the
resolution |
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as my proxy thinks fit |
I acknowledge that my vote by proxy will be cast on the basis that I will not have heard the discussion about the resolution at the AGM.
In the event of a proxy vote being granted to a nominated member who is not present at the AGM, the proxy vote by default will be cast by the Chair of the meeting.
Signed...................................................... Dated...............................................