Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, seeks to boost investment in UK infrastructure from British pension funds in a bid to support growth.

Reeves has called on UK pension funds to learn from the successes of Canadian counterparts in investing in the UK, and has met with the ‘Maple 8’ group of funds that have invested billions in the UK economy in recent years.

The Chancellor’s meeting on 7th August in Toronto sought to learn how consolidating pension funds into larger investment funds could help drive investment in productive assets such as vital infrastructure and high-growth businesses.

The meeting is part of intensive industry engagement for the landmark review of pension fund investment announced last month to boost investment in the UK and deliver higher returns for people’s pension savings.

Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves said:

“The size of Canadian pension schemes means they can invest far more in productive assets like vital infrastructure than ours do.

“I want British schemes to learn lessons from the Canadian model and fire up the UK economy, which would deliver better returns for savers and unlock billions of pounds of investment.“

Meeting with Canadian pension funds comes ahead of Reeves’ first Mansion House address, where she will focus on the British financial sector can deliver more investment in order to support growth.