SWITZERLAND - The pension fund for the Council of European Nuclear Research (CERN) workers is finalising changes to its trustee management and staffing arrangements, as Richard Balfe is now a director of the fund, and a new manager is joining to head up the plan team.
 
Balfe (pictured), who has many years of pensions experience as chairman of the Members of the European Parliament (MEP) pension fund, has also joined the €4bn Swiss-based scheme's board this year as one of two specialist external directors, following a shake-up of the fund's governing structure.

His appointment also came ahead of changes to the scheme's internal management, as Christian Cuénoud, the current head of the pension fund, is due to retire later this year, and enters the transition phase on 1 September when his replacement, Mr T Económou, becomes general manager of the pension fund.

The Council of European Nuclear Research defined benefits pension fund is a mature plan established in 1957 with over 6,000 members. It provides benefits to workers of the Hadron Collider project, among others, as well as the European Space Observation Agency based in Munich, but it still has more assets coming than it pays out.

Balfe said he will continue with his many existing duties, including as chair of the MEP fund as well as acting as The Conservative Party's trade union envoy - a role which today requires much negotiation on pensions issues - and as a member of the EU's international election monitoring committee.

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