NEWS

Redwood Bank has demonstrated its commitment to environmental, social and governance (ESG) objectives in recent years through a series of initiatives, including the launch of a special Green Reward for landlords who achieve the highest energy standards.  

Alex John, who has had an impressive banking career in Australia, working in business development, product development, risk, strategy and ESG roles, has joined Redwood as its new ESG manager.  

Alex, who relocated to London for his new role, said: “Having grown up in regional Australia, nature, the environment and sustainability have always been important to me. I was fascinated by how influential the finance sector could be in financing the transition to net zero, supporting the economy and helping the world change positively.   

“In order to learn as much about ESG as I could, I spent time at a specialist climate risk and energy management consulting firm. While I learned a lot in my time there, it made me realise I missed the mechanics of banking and the finance sector more broadly. That, and the rapidly evolving regulatory landscape around ESG, green and sustainable finance, drew me back to banking. 

“T­­he bank recognises that climate change is one of the most significant challenges facing society and takes a proactive approach to its environmental responsibilities. It is also committed to being a responsible and responsive employer and to applying responsible banking in all that it does.”

 Redwood has achieved Investors in the Environment (iiE) national bronze and silver accreditations. Its recent charitable efforts have included supporting creative mental health charity PoetsIN and the National Literacy Trust, colleagues volunteering at a dogs’ home in Warrington, and working alongside a grass roots football club to redevelop its changing rooms. 

The team also regularly supports and runs events internally to raise awareness of charities and good causes.  

Thomson Reuters announced the latest evolution of its strategic partnership with SAP to introduce a product integration aimed at supporting customers with environmental, social and governance (ESG) reporting, simplifying compliance with emerging regulations for multinational corporations. The integration plans include combining Thomson Reuters ONESOURCE Statutory Reporting and SAP Sustainability Control Tower, enabling customers to prepare, gather, and file ESG data seamlessly within a unified solution. 

This significant product collaboration will deliver a best of breed software solution, providing customers with the last mile report on top of SAP Sustainability Control Tower’s foundational ESG management capabilities. Businesses operating in, or connected to, the European Union (EU) will be able to comply with the obligations of the EU’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), starting in January 2025 and expanding in scope and reach in subsequent years. As other countries roll out global standards – such as the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) – this partnership will provide the foundation to address the last mile reporting obligations. 

“We are thrilled to be collaborating with SAP to reduce the complexity and burden of complying with emerging regulations,” said Ray Grove, head of corporate tax and trade at Thomson Reuters. “This integration represents a significant step forward in simplifying ESG reporting for global organisations, particularly in light of the upcoming CSRD requirements and other global ESG reporting requirements. Together, we are committed to helping businesses navigate the evolving regulatory landscape and achieving their sustainability goals.” 

“The partnership with Thomson Reuters is part of SAP’s commitment to providing ERP-centric, cloud-based and AI-enabled sustainability solutions that meet the needs of businesses worldwide,” said Gunther Rothermel, Chief Product Officer and co-General Manager for SAP Sustainability. “The combination of SAP Sustainability Control Tower and Thomson Reuters ONESOURCE Statutory Reporting provides our customers with last-mile reporting functionality based on the SAP Sustainability Control Tower data foundation.” 

The Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) has launched a decarbonisation framework designed to help the buildings and construction sector set emissions reduction targets and meet net-zero.  
 
The SBTi is a corporate climate action organisation that develops decarbonisation frameworks in line with climate science and works to verify the soundness of corporate climate strategies.  
 
The new framework sets emissions reduction targets aligned with limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees C for the buildings industry, which the SBTI says is responsible for more than a quarter of energy-related emissions. The 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change aims to limit the world's long-term temperature increase to no more than 1.5 degrees C above preindustrial levels.  

A new report from Novuna Business Finance reveals that small businesses are expanding their definition of sustainability beyond traditional environmental goals. While businesses continue to focus on reducing their carbon footprint, they are also placing a strong emphasis on prioritising workplace diversity, supporting community engagement and creating an inclusive business culture.  

Part Two of the ‘Small Business Perspective on Sustainability: Investment, Cost or Burden’ Report – explores diverse viewpoints that demonstrate sustainability’s far- reaching impact. While challenges like securing funding and meeting net zero targets are common concerns for small business owners, issues such as promoting inclusivity and fairness, building confidence in the people who work within the business and the important role that small businesses play in supporting the community are equally important considerations. 

Jo Morris, Head of Insight at Novuna Business Finance commented: “By listening to the diverse perspectives of small business owners across the UK we have gained a deeper understanding of how sustainability is integrated into their businesses. The personal stories we’ve gathered show, shows that sustainability extends beyond environmental impact to become a core aspect of the business and its workforce. This view demonstrates that sustainability is not just a cost to the business but also a strategic investment that drives business growth and resilience.  

“We too at Novuna Business Finance take seriously our responsibilities to support society and to make a positive and sustainable difference to people’s lives. The fight against climate change – and the push towards a more sustainable world – are tasks that involve everyone working together. We remain committed to supporting SMEs in integrating and adopting these broad sustainability initiatives.” 

The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) welcomed the Government tabling legislation in Parliament on 9 September 2024 to address the significant delays in local authority audits. This followed a Written Ministerial Statement issued on 30 July 2024. 

This Statutory Instrument, laid alongside the revised Code of Audit Practice from the National Audit Office (NAO), introduces backstop dates for local bodies and their auditors to publish audited accounts, starting the process of repairing the foundations of local audit. The first of these will be on 13 December 2024.  

As system leader for local audit, the FRC is taking steps to support auditors in implementing these measures.  

The NAO has developed Local Audit Reset and Recovery Implementation Guidance (LARRIGs) in close collaboration with the FRC and audit firms. The LARRIGs, endorsed by the FRC, will be published shortly to help auditors meet the requirements of the revised Code of Audit Practice. The FRC and NAO will continue to work with audit firms throughout this process to rebuild assurance and recover the local audit system.  

Sarah Rapson, FRC Executive Director of Supervision, said, "The local audit system plays a crucial role in ensuring transparency and accountability for public money spent on vital local services, which the current backlog has undermined. This legislation represents a necessary step towards rebuilding the system so it can provide the assurance the public deserves.   

“The FRC is committed to supporting auditors and local bodies through this transition, balancing the need for timely reporting with maintaining audit quality, restoring public confidence in local government finance."  

As previously confirmed, the FRC will pause routine inspections of major local audits for financial years up to and including 2022/23, unless there is a clear public interest case to do so. This will allow auditors to focus on clearing the backlog and returning to timely reporting.  

Further information on these measures and the FRC’s activity to support their implementation are available on its website. 

According to S&P Global Sustainable, understanding the true value of our economic activity is critical for our shared future. It’s report, Unpriced Environmental Costs, takes a step toward this by estimating the global level of environmental damage costs of publicly listed companies which are otherwise invisible.
 
This report analyses the environmental costs produced by publicly listed companies around the world through several lenses: impact, also referred to as environmental key performance indicators; sector and sector group; and geographic region. 
 
The study finds that: 

• Companies in the S&P Global Broad Market Index (BMI) were responsible for $3.71 trillion in unpriced environmental costs across their direct operations in 2021 – equal to more than 4% of global GDP that year. 
• More than 26% of companies in the S&P Global BMI generated unpriced environmental costs larger than their net income. 
• Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions were responsible for the majority of unpriced environmental damage costs (63.6%) for these companies, followed by air pollution (26.2%) and land use (4.7%). The impacts of generating electricity from fossil fuels — particularly coal — represented the largest source of environmental costs globally.