Comic Relief has today committed not to make investments in arms, alcohol and tobacco companies as part of a new investment policy "in line with the ethos of the charity".
Comic Relief, which has an investment portfolio of £138m, was criticised in a Panorama programme last year for investing millions of pounds in companies which make most of their money in these areas, which run directly contrary to its mission.
The charity announced a review of its policy the day after the programme aired, and has today published the review panel conclusions, all five of which it has agreed to accept.
The panel recommended Comic Relief have “only a small number of absolute prohibitions” in its portfolios, in order to “avoid an excessive reduction in the universe available for investment”. But the panel said the charity should engage with companies it invests in to improve their behaviour.
The charity has already removed the excluded stocks from its portfolio. It has also promised to sign up to the UN Principles for Responsible Investment, to build stronger links between its investment committee and its trustees, and to allocate a proportion of its portfolio to social investment.
It has committed to increase transparency by publishing in its accounts a list of funds it is invested in, a breakdown of its investments by asset class, any specific investments of over £5m, and the proportion of Comic Relief’s assets that are unallocated or allocated.
These requirements go far beyond the investment disclosures provided by most major charities, which rarely give information about the type of companies they invest in, or which funds they use.
The review panel included an independent chair, John Kingston, former founder director of social investors CAF Venturesome, and Andrew Hind, editor of Charity Finance, as well as three internal contributors.
The panel recommended that Comic Relief’s investment policy should reflect its vision, and should use its investments to do good, not just to avoid doing harm.
“Comic Relief should act, and be seen to act, as one organisation, applying the same values to its investments as to all other activities, including fundraising, procurement and grant making,” the review document said. “Within this Comic Relief should approach ‘responsible investment’ with an attitude of positive engagement, not negativity, and should aim to inspire and influence business rather than applying restrictions alone.
“Comic Relief is a household name and its place in the national consciousness could give it more influence than other foundations with greater assets but a lower profile.
“The review of Comic Relief’s investments that is described in this paper was carried out in response to an external threat, but the panel believes that it also represents an opportunity to increase the charity’s impact. By revising its investment policy Comic Relief can ensure that it is using all of its money, capital and income, to work towards a just world free from poverty.”
Tim Davie, chair of Comic Relief, said: “Public trust is the cornerstone of Comic Relief and we would be nothing without our many supporters to whom we have listened and will keep listening.
“We now have an investment policy that is firmly in line with the ethos of the charity, at the same time as making sure that the money we raise can go further to change lives both here in the UK and abroad.”
