Lloyd's of London boss calls for UN climate alliance rules rethink

A global climate alliance for insurers needs to make its membership rules less prescriptive or risk falling apart, the boss of Lloyd's of London said after political pressure from some U.S. states prompted some companies to leave.

The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) on Wednesday said "recent discussions within the United States" had been behind four insurance firms quitting the U.N.-convened Net Zero Insurance Alliance (NZIA) in recent months.

In response, Lloyd's Chief Executive John Neal told Reuters the exits should lead to a rethink about what it means to be a member of the group.

"There are five objectives, and you have 12 months to meet one of them and 36 months to meet three of them. NZIA need to have another look at what their objectives are or the alliance will fall apart."

Neal added that Lloyd's complied with NZIA's requirements and had no plans to exit. "We don't need to precipitate this," he said.

Republican federal and state lawmakers, governors, and attorneys general have been pushing back on growing efforts by investors and executives to include environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors in their business decision making.

Signatories to NZIA, part of the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero set up by U.N. climate envoy Mark Carney, will hold a call on Thursday to discuss the situation in the United States and NZIA's options including whether "to carry on or wind it up", a source familiar with the matter said.

That call will be followed by a meeting of the group's steering committee, which is chaired by Renaud Guidée, AXA's Group Chief Risk Officer, the source said, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter.

A spokesperson for NZIA did not immediately respond to a request for comment.


Reuters