United Kingdom

UK - Lane Clark & Peacock LLP has appointed Griff Williams as a senior consultant within its investment department.

UK - Pension funds have called on media giant BSkyB to justify the role of Allan Leighton as a non-executive director of the firm.

UK - Global indices provider MSCI has increased the number of hedge funds in its Hedge Invest Index from 74 to 82, following a quarterly review.

UK - Specialist UK equities manager SVM Asset Management has grown its pension fund assets to over a third of its total assets under management.

UK - The average balanced, pooled pension fund achieved a return of 15% for the 11 months to November 2003, new figures show.

UK - Knowledge management company UBSi is offering a free trial of its pensions governance solution CAGe to a limited number of schemes.

UK - Brewing giant Scottish & Newcastle is contracting its final salary scheme back into the state second pension system.

UK - Aegon UK has acquired its sixth IFA firm following the purchase of Aurora Financial Group for an undisclosed sum.

UK - Couch potato syndrome will reverse mortality rate improvements and force insurers to modify their annuity rates, an impending government report is set to indicate.

UK - Land Rover has bowed to union pressure over a proposal to increase employee contributions into its final salary pension scheme.