Royal London publishes its Climate Transition Plan

Royal London, the UK's largest mutual life, pensions and investment provider, has today published its inaugural Climate Transition Plan.

Its Climate Transition Plan sets out the company's strategic roadmap for evolving its operations, investments, and policies to support a low-carbon, climate-resilient future — delivering good customer outcomes while being aligned with the goals of the Paris Agreement.

The Plan outlines four core areas of action to support Royal London’s ongoing journey to delivering its climate commitments¹: stakeholder engagement, portfolio emissions reduction, climate-aware investment solutions, and operational emissions management.

In 2021, Royal London committed to:

• Reducing its carbon footprint² (Scope 3) from its investment portfolio by 50% by 2030 (from a 2020 baseline), and to achieving net zero emissions by 2050¹.
• Net zero direct operational emissions by 2030 (Scopes 1 and 2) and net zero in its Scope 3 non-investment value chain by 2050¹.

Royal London's Climate Report (TCFD) has also been published today outlining its progress against its climate targets in 2024. As at 31 December 2024, the carbon footprint² of its corporate fixed income and listed equity portfolio had reduced by 35% since 2020. Its Scope 1 and Scope 2 location-based emissions had decreased by 68% since 2019 and its non-investment value chain Scope 3 emissions had reduced by 47% since 2019.

The mutual is intensifying its engagement with investee companies, policymakers, and suppliers, aiming to influence 70% of its financed emissions and 80% of supplier emissions by 2030. In parallel, it is pursuing low-emissions investment strategies and strengthening its approach to high-emitting sectors, including fossil fuels.

Royal London will also be expanding its range of climate-aware investment products, enabling customers and clients to support the low-carbon transition.

Commenting on the report, Royal London's Head of Group Sustainability and Stewardship Jo Walker said:

“As the UK Government consults on mandating climate transition plan disclosures, we are already clear in our expectations: the companies we invest in should have credible climate transition plans—particularly those with the greatest carbon footprints. Our engagement focuses not just on the existence of these plans, but on their quality and consistent delivery.

"We are committed to delivering our own climate strategy and playing our part in moving fairly to a sustainable world. The journey to net zero is complex, but our Climate Transition Plan sets out a clear roadmap—demonstrating how we will navigate key dependencies and meet our climate goals. It reaffirms our commitment to driving real-world change that benefits our customers, our stakeholders and, importantly, society at large.”