The world of investment is changing, especially where it is no longer possible to ignore statements from our own UK Government making it clear that change is happening.
The Climate Change Act 2008 committed the UK to an 80% reduction in carbon emissions relative to the levels in 1990, to be achieved by 2050. In June 2019, secondary legislation was passed that extended that target to “at least 100%”.
What is clear is that where we cannot continue to burn and keep burning the fossil fuels indefinitely, dictating massive changes namely that we will be carbon free by the year 2050 – making it mandatory that Petrol and Diesel cars, for both commercial and domestic use, are to be banned by 2030, with hybrid duel fuel vehicles being banned from 2035. So just one aspect of our changing lives and we have to embrace travel using electric cars and using natural energy sources.
We have already seen coal fired electricity plants being replaced mainly with sustainable natural energy both onshore and offshore. This is creating massive changes to how companies make their profits. BP saw its profits fall enough for their statement this year that their future profits lay elsewhere supporting natural energy sources. It is a massive challenge for all companies which, if ignored, will mean they will be out of business.
These massive changes in turn create massive opportunities for the investor.
It is no surprise that since the early versions of ethical investment – from 1985 where the first ethically screened investment fund had a criterion which excluded tobacco, arms, alcohol and oppressive regimes – over 90 plus investment funds have launched, offering a wide range of investment criteria; both negatively screened and with positive investment criteria i.e. investing into companies involved in promoting sustainability.
We now live with socially responsible and impact investments, where we are becoming more involved in the funds which are available and affordable to all clients, providing excellent returns across a wide range of investments to help you grow your investment funds that are comparable with ‘mainstream’ investments. Although returns cannot be guaranteed, this is as a way of improving your own financial wellbeing over time, but also realising that consideration has been given to how your investment could impact people’s lives and the environment in other countries too.
We have seen how continued burning of fossil fuels has had an effect on our changing weather systems and our planet. We are seeing manufacturing change to address this, and investments are making a difference by directing the future investments substantially in areas that do not cause harm to our planet or the people who populate it. It is a massive change that is seeing substantial potential growth for all our investors.
If this is an area you would like to learn more about – how you can make a difference in your own investing plans, using funds that can also be matched to your own investor risk profile for longer term potential returns – then please do contact me and I would be pleased to discuss with you some of the opportunities that can make a difference to you and others.
David Rackham is an Independent Financial Adviser at Temple Wealth Management and can be contacted on 07734 172681 or 01329 282882 during office hours or at david.rackham@templewealth.co.uk – he would welcome your call.
Please remember that investments can go up or down and you could lose some or all of your money. Minimum investment period for investing into stocks and shares investments is 5 years plus.