§ 37. Sir Sydney Chapman (Chipping Barnet)To ask the hon. Member for Middlesbrough, representing the Church Commissioners, what assessment he has made of the effect on the Church Commissioners' assets of the fall in the value of shares.[81531]
§ Second Church Estates Commissioner (Mr. Stuart Bell)Following their detailed triennial review as at the end of 2000, the Commissioners' actuaries carried out an interim review of the fund's position at the end of 2001 and concluded that the forecast distributions for 363 2002–04 were not likely to lead to an adverse consequence for the long-term financial position of the Commissioners.
§ Sir Sydney ChapmanI am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for that answer. Does he recall that a few years ago the Commissioners were taken to task for allegedly investing too much of their money in property? Now that the cycle has gone full circle, does not the moral stand—that in their investments the Commissioners ought, if he will accept the phrase, to have a policy of a catholic spread?
§ Mr. BellI am always grateful to the hon. Gentleman for his contributions. When I took over this post five years ago I was assured that it had more to do with the balance sheet than the Bible, and I am happy to see that the Church's assets have increased from £3 billion to £4.5 billion under my stewardship. If victory has a thousand fathers, I may be No. 995.
In answer to the hon. Gentleman's substantive question, we have 60 per cent. of our assets in shares and the remainder in property, which means that we are less subject to the volatility of the stock exchange than we might be. Our distribution policy has not therefore been affected by a fall in shares on the stock exchanges of the world.
§ Mr. Peter Pike (Burnley)My hon. Friend will realise that it will be shown that the Church Commissioners could have done slightly better on the stock exchange if they did not have an ethical investment policy. However, does he accept that the majority of people in the Church and in the House believe that it is right to continue to pursue that ethical policy and that income is not always the main criterion to be taken into account?
§ Mr. BellMy hon. Friend makes a pertinent point. If the Church had invested in British American Tobacco and breweries, we would be doing better on the stock 364 side. However, we have an ethical investment policy—I nearly said ethical foreign policy—which aims to obtain the best long-term return on our investment without undue risk, and we are committed to that policy.