Europe

UK - Watson Wyatt has appointed Robert Brown as a senior consultant in its investment practice, effective from October.

UK - The European Court of Justice has set a date for what is potentially a landmark ruling on tax harmonisation.

US/UK - UK companies should start to monitor pension risks more closely after a move by Standard & Poor's (S&P) to rate US defined benefit pension plan sponsors, according to Mercer Human Resource Consulting.

UK - The Accounting Standards Board has rejected a bid by the Society of Pension Consultants to change the way death benefits are calculated under FRS17.

UK - Four funds run by Scottish Widows Investment Partnership have been awarded single A ratings by Standard & Poor's.

UK - Employee benefits consultant Gissings is offering a series of training courses for new and experienced trustees.

UK - An online recruitment service for organisations seeking specialist SRI and CSR staff is being launched by news service Ethical Performance in September.

UK - The £2bn J. Sainsbury Pension Scheme has revealed sharp falls in the value of its individual manager portfolios to the end of June.

UK - The £1.34bn Associated British Foods Pension Fund has sold a retail warehouse park in Southampton to Axa Sun Life for £17.7m.

EUROPE - Frits Bolkestein, the EC's internal market commissioner, has responded to recent criticisms of the proposed Pension Funds Directive.