LawDeb Pensions appointed to the Irish Life EMPOWER Master Trust

“LawDeb has extensive experience working as trustees to master trusts and therefore have a deep understanding of what this role requires. We consider that good governance is the right people doing the right things in the right way, with the common purpose of reaching the most effective decisions and outcomes. At its heart lies an orderly, timely and structured process with the right inputs in terms of information and advice. We were delighted that Irish life’s EMPOWER Master Trust benchmarks so well and we look forward to working with the team at Irish Life, for the benefit of its Master Trust members.”

Paul Torsney, Head of Trustee and Governance Services – LawDeb Ireland

“We are delighted that Paul Torsney together with Keith Scott and independent trustee John O’Connell have been appointed by the EMPOWER Master Trust. Paul has done a tremendous job building Law Debenture’s pensions business in Ireland and working with DB, DC and DC Master Trust clients. At Law Debenture, we have extensive experience of working with Master Trusts and a well-developed framework for governance and decision-making for our sole trustee clients which will benefit both the Irish Life team and the Master Trust members.”

Vicky Paramour, Managing Director – Pensions

“The Pensions Authority's recent master trust report confirms that generally good progress has been made in master trusts across the board in meeting the latest regulatory demands. At Irish Life we are particularly delighted that our EMPOWER Master Trust benchmarks so well and is even seen to be going above and beyond the requirements and leading the pack in some key areas. From a conflict-of-interest perspective, the Authority specifically welcomed instances where market leading master trusts, like the Irish Life EMPOWER Master Trust, have appointed independent DAC directors and chairpersons ‘with no employment links to the founder organisation’. In addition, the Authority noted that master trusts who have not ensured wholly independent oversight need to closely monitor the potential for conflicts of interest going forward.”

Irish Life Corporate Business

"We are delighted to see the Pensions Authority report highlighting master trusts who have gone above and beyond the requirements by appointing independent DAC directors and chairpersons. Ensuring wholly independent oversight has been a major focus for our EMPOWER Master Trust proposition, so it’s great to see this key differentiator being acknowledged by the Authority."

Shane O'Farrell, Director of Products at Irish Life Corporate Business