United Kingdom

UK - Suffolk County Council has paid out an extra 43.6% on top of firefighters' basic salaries to cover pensions costs.

UK - The Investment Management Association will hold its annual conference in London's Great Eastern Hotel on October 7.

UK - Hewitt Bacon & Woodrow has been appointed as the actuary, pensions and investment consultant to the £350m Polestar Pension Scheme.

UK - A quarter of product providers expect to conduct up to 40% of their business electronically within the next year, a new survey shows.

UK - Fund managers are urging schemes to let them use derivatives in their bond mandates which will, they claim, reduce risk profiles substantially.

UK - The Mineworkers' Pension Scheme has joined forces with The Unclaimed Assets Register to track down 30,000 members who have not claimed entitlements.

UK - The Society of Pension Consultants has dismissed growing public support for compulsory pension contributions.

UK - There is "significant variation" in the voting guidelines given to pension funds and insurers, a survey by Ernst & Young shows.

UK - Scheme funding problems have been blamed for a wave of cutbacks at schools and the first-time fall in GCSE pass rates.

UK - The £450m Clwyd Pension Fund has appointed ABN Amro Mellon Global Securities Services to provide it with custody, investment accounting and securities lending services.