The Governance for Growth Investor Campaign (GGIC) has announced four major investor organisations as new supporters – Pensions UK, the International Corporate Governance Network (ICGN), the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) and the UK Sustainable Investment and Finance Association (UKSIF).
They have joined the campaign five months after it launched with a focus on protecting and strengthening UK corporate governance standards. All four newly added groups are long-standing advocates of stewardship and investor rights.
Existing supporters of the GGIC include Brunel Pension Partnership, the Church of England Pensions Board, People’s Pension, Brightwell and Railpen.
The GGIC argues that sustainable growth relies on strong governance, and that UK pension funds should be empowered to help companies grow within private and public market frameworks that support effective long-term value creation.
While the campaign will focus on longer-term, strategic relationship-building and awareness-raising with political and policy decision-makers around these pillars, it said at the time it launched in July that it will focus engagement on the Draft Audit Reform and Corporate Governance Bill.
Speaking about its support for the GGIC, Tiffany Tsang, head of DB, LGPS and investment at Pensions UK, said: “This initiative reflects our enduring commitment to transparency, shareholder rights, and collective engagement, ensuring savers’ interests remain protected while enabling companies to access capital and thrive responsibly.”
The new backing comes as GGIC published a new paper challenging claims that UK governance rules deter listings or hinder market competitiveness.
The paper argues that robust governance, including clear shareholder rights and accountability mechanisms, remains central to how long-term investors assess risk and value companies.
Caroline Escott, head of investment stewardship and co-head of sustainable ownership at Railpen, said: “As UK pension schemes, investing on behalf of millions of UK savers, we want to see our domestic companies and capital markets thrive. While there is still much to celebrate about the UK as a destination for capital, sound policymaking must rest on solid evidence.
“This is why our campaign’s paper seeks to set the record straight: good governance supports economic growth, does not deter public listings, and is of utmost importance to the kinds of long-term capital that policymakers are rightly keen to attract.”
Escott has previously argued that investors should match the lobbying power of corporates by showing up in policy debates, working through membership bodies, and supporting efforts such as the GGIC.
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