Europe

UK - Beleaguered telecoms firm Marconi is freezing contributions into its £2.35bn DB plan.

UK/SWITZERLAND - Financial solutions provider Brainpower has appointed Hammad Nasar as chief marketing officer and director.

UK - The NAPF has defended its corporate governance activism after a study showed pay packages for FTSE100 executives increased 23% last year.

UK - GlaxoSmithKline, the pharmaceuticals giant, has suffered one of the biggest shareholder revolts in British corporate history following the rejection of a 'golden parachute' deal for chief executive Jean-Pierre Garnier.

UK - Long-term mortgages will become a crucial asset class for pension schemes looking for secure income streams, Lane Clark & Peacock claims.

UK - Statutory money purchase illustrations will cause shock and confusion and drive up scheme costs, experts claim.

UK - GR Communications, the specialist financial PR and communication consultancy, has appointed Martyn Hurd as non-executive director.

UK - Tilney Investment Management is looking to make a series of acquisitions to bolster its presence in both the private clients and institutional markets.

EUROPE - Standard & Poor's Ratings Services says that many top European companies are still not consistently disclosing their assumptions on future increases in pensionable earnings.

UK - Fears have surfaced within The Labour Party over the liquidity of its pension scheme, which holds a "dangerously high" 83% allocation to equities.