DOCSLIB.ORG

Annual Report 2016

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Annual Report 2016 Annual Report 2016 President Fred Brown General Secretary Manchester Chris Keates Friday 14 April 2017 Honorary Treasurer Monday 17 April 2017 Brian Cookson Contents Introduction 5 Policy: Pay 8 Pensions 18 Conditions of Service 27 Supply Teachers 37 Funding 40 Health and Safety 45 Education 50 Parliamentary 76 Work with the Wider Trade Union Movement 88 International 94 Organising: Industrial Action 103 Equal Opportunities 108 Recruitment 114 Trade Union Education and Training 116 Legal Aid, Benevolence and Services 120 Personal 127 Appendix 1: NASUWT Conferences and Seminars (other than training) 128 Appendix 2: External Conferences, Seminars and Events at which the 133 NASUWT was represented Appendix 3: NASUWT Motions to the TUC, STUC, WTUC, ICTU, 139 TUC Equalities Conferences and International Motions Appendix 4: General Teaching Councils 157 Appendix 5: Affiliations, Donations and Sponsorships (over £500) 159 Appendix 6: Annual Conferences – Devolved Nations/Administrations 160 Appendix 7: Consultation Responses 162 Appendix 8: NASUWT Major Projects, Research and Surveys 166 Appendix 9: Advisory Committee Members 168 Appendix 10: Standing Committees 169 3 INTRODUCTION The year 2016 has been a momentous year. Domestically and globally, we have witnessed events that have shaken the world and changed the course of our history. But, despite these events, the NASUWT has continued to stand strong. In a climate of hostility and attacks on trade unions and workers’ rights, the NASUWT continued to grow. More teachers and school leaders joined and more members engaged in the Union nationally and locally, recognising what the NASUWT has to offer to teachers at every stage of their career. Our national and regional centres, together with the vital work of lay activists, have continued to provide expert assistance to members. Through our first-class legal advice and assistance, we have continued to secure record successes for our members, helping members who have faced threats to their employment or cuts to their pay to secure their rights at work. During the year, we secured record levels of compensation for members following successful claims including unfair dismissal, personal injuries and criminal assault, with over £27 million secured in 2016. Whilst winning compensation for members is and will continue to be important, it has never been an end in itself for the NASUWT. The NASUWT has been actively working to make workplaces safer places for our members, too, with our high-profile health and safety at work campaigns. Ensuring that our decision-making and representational structures are inclusive and representative has also been a key focus of the Union’s work during the year. Consultation conferences, training courses, development courses and a raft of other events have continued to engage more members actively in the life of the Union. We have taken up members’ collective concerns through our active engagement on the national stage with the Trades Union Congress (TUC), Wales TUC (WTUC), Scottish TUC (STUC) and Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU), and also internationally where the NASUWT has been represented on the Executive Board of Education International (EI) and on the Committee of the European Trade Union Committee for Education (ETUCE). Throughout the year, we have put equalities, trade union and workers’ rights and the right of all children and young people to free quality education at the front and centre of our work, whilst also maintaining and advancing our mission of putting teachers first. The NASUWT was alone as the only teachers’ union that maintained an ongoing national trade dispute with governments and administrations across the UK on pay, pensions, working conditions and jobs. With the passage of the Trade Union Act 2016, we continued to step up our campaigning to challenge and confront anti-trade union legislation, and the increasing attacks on workers’ rights and human rights. The Union was the only teachers’ union invited to provide oral evidence to the House of Commons during the passage of this draconian legislation. Whilst opposing the legislation, the NASUWT has also worked to ensure that it is ready to meet the new requirements placed on it as a result of the ideologically driven Trade Union Act 2016 and the Transparency of Lobbying, Non-Party Campaigning and Trade Union Administration Act 2014, both of which contributed to relegating the UK to the lower divisions in the global league table for workers’ rights according to the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC). 5 During the year, support for ‘populist’ and nationalist movements has continued to rise. However, the NASUWT maintained its determination to speak out against wider attacks on human rights and civil liberties. And, with record levels of recorded hate crimes in the weeks and months following the UK European Union (EU) Referendum vote on 23 June, the Union was the first to send a clear message to teachers and to politicians that we would not tolerate these attacks and that we would stand up for our members, at home and abroad, who are impacted as a result of the Brexit vote. The NASUWT Gender Equality Challenge and the Union’s Act for Racial Justice campaigns, together with our work with key politicians on internet safety, have also confirmed our work at the forefront of efforts to challenge prejudice, bigotry and hatred. Whilst defending teachers’ rights has been paramount, so too has been the Union’s work to promote the rights of children and young people. With national elections in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales, the NASUWT once again highlighted the inextricable link between the rights of teachers and pupils in our campaign for a Vote for Education. The NASUWT’s annual Big Question survey has continued to provide a source of key evidence on the state of the teaching profession in the UK. Together with our programme of in-house and independently commissioned research, the NASUWT continued to provide many thorns in the side of governments and administrations throughout the UK, highlighting teachers’ concerns about workload, pay, pensions and jobs. No other union has done more in this area. Our industrial action also continued to play a key part in our defence of members. No other union took more action to defend teachers, with hundreds of days of strike-action notices issued in 2016 alone. Our determined use of strike action has demonstrated its worth, with employers quickly recognising the importance of engaging in dialogue in order to avoid unnecessary disruption in schools. The NASUWT’s continuous programme of action short of strike action has continued to provide an essential protection for our members, enabling members to walk an appropriate line in terms of the professional expectations placed on them each and every day. Action short of strike action has also been a vital release for members’ anger, enabling NASUWT members to protest against the unjustified and detrimental attacks on their terms and conditions of service. Refusal to teach violent pupils has also remained an important strand of the NASUWT’s industrial-action response to protect and defend members. Nationally, the Union’s determined pursuit of industrial action secured a number of gains in the year, which are documented throughout this report, including: • forcing further action by Government on workload reduction; • securing Ofsted and Estyn clarification documents to challenge unacceptable workload in schools; • three Government reports, launched at the NASUWT Conference, aimed at tackling unreasonable practices associated with marking and assessment, planning and use of data; • bringing employers to the negotiating table to talk about pay and working conditions following the commencement of a rolling programme of national strike action in Northern Ireland; and • securing workload protections for NASUWT members in schools across Scotland. Our pragmatic and determined approach has also secured: • a commitment to partnership working to advance work to improve teachers’ working conditions in Jersey; • social-partnership dialogue in Gibraltar; and • detailed negotiations on pay and pensions affecting members in Guernsey. 6 Our action, policies and strategies, together with the range of information, advice, support and training available for members, has continued to be a critical lifeline for members in an increasingly hostile and uncertain climate. Throughout the year, the NASUWT has continued to deal with the issues affecting members and we have demonstrated, through our work, our capacity to win for members. The detailed work of the Union, including the actions taken in furtherance of Conference Resolutions, is documented throughout this year’s Annual Report. The National Executive is grateful to the work of NASUWT members, activists and staff in delivering another highly successful year for the Union. DRAFT COPY THIS VERSION IS UNPROOFREAD 7 POLICY PAY ENGLAND AND WALES Teachers’ Pay The 2016-17 Pay Award 1.1 The 2016-17 Teachers’ Pay Award was the subject of the 26th Report of the School Teachers’ Review Body (STRB). The remit for the STRB’s 26th Report called for the following matters to be considered: • what adjustments should be made to the salary and allowance ranges for classroom teachers, unqualified teachers and school leaders to promote recruitment and retention within an average pay award of 1%; • what adjustments, if any, should be made to the pay and conditions framework to provide additional flexibilities for schools and incentives to recognise performance; • whether the existing salary-sacrifice arrangements should be extended to provide scope for a salary-advance scheme for rental deposits; and • what changes to the School Teachers’ Pay and Conditions Document (STPCD) may be appropriate following the introduction of new registration-fee arrangements to finance the Welsh Education Workforce Council (EWC). 1.2 In addition, the Secretary of State for Education asked the STRB to consider introducing discretion for schools to allow a teacher to be moved down from the upper pay range to the main pay range. 1.3 In February, the NASUWT met with the STRB to present its oral evidence.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • 24178 Cover.Indd
    School Teachers’ Review Body Twenty-First Report – 2012 Chair: Dame Patricia Hodgson, DBE Cm 8487 £29.75 School Teachers’ Review Body TWENTY-FIRST REPORT – 2012 Chair: Dame Patricia Hodgson, DBE Presented to Parliament by the Prime Minister and the Secretary of State for Education by Command of Her Majesty December 2012 Cm 8487 £29.75 © Crown copyright 2012 You may re-use this information (excluding logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/ or e-mail: [email protected]. Where we have identified any third party copyright information you will need to obtain permission from the copyright holders concerned. Any enquiries regarding this publication should be sent to: Office of Manpower Economics, Victoria House, Southampton Row, London WC1B 4AD http://www.ome.uk.com/enquiry/default.aspx This publication is available for download at www.official-documents.gov.uk ISBN: 9780101848725 Printed in the UK by The Stationery Office Limited on behalf of the Controller of Her Majesty’s Stationery Office ID P002523873 11/12 24178 18534 Printed on paper containing 75% recycled fibre content minimum. TERMS AND ABBREVIATIONS Consultees Organisations which made representations and provided evidence to the STRB ASCL Association of School and College Leaders ATL Association of Teachers and Lecturers BATOD British Association of Teachers of the Deaf DfE/the Department for Education Department four unions
    [Show full text]
  • Council for Economic Renewal Wales TUC Background Note for 25 July
    Agenda Item 3 (a) CfER 25/07/16 Council for Economic Renewal Wales TUC background note for 25th July 2016 meeting Responding to Brexit 1. The decision to leave the European Union has the potential to have a massive, negative impact on jobs, investment and employment rights for workers in Wales and the rest of the UK. 2. As was the case with the financial crisis and the austerity agenda, it is likely that the people and communities worst impacted as a result of Brexit will be those already facing serious economic and social challenges. There needs to be an overarching Welsh government view and strategy to take account of the changed circumstances. 3. The Wales TUC has proposed that the First Minister convene an all Wales summit to identify and promote a Wales national plan in response to Brexit. 4. The summit should fully engage every level of government in Wales (including the WLGA and Wales office), as well as the key public & private sector social partners. Relevant organisations with expertise in the area of structural funds and from the most impacted industrial sectors could also be included. Given the need for full political engagement in the discussion we believe that the official opposition should also be involved in the summit. We would also see the national plan involving mechanisms for future social partner engagement in delivery and review. 5. A summit should not be seen as replacing the role of the Workforce Partnership Council, the structural funds Programme Monitoring Committee or the Council for Economic Renewal. We see each as being important in helping to shape aspects of the overall discussion which is required - but none of them are adequate in and of themselves.
    [Show full text]
  • 1 Written Evidence Submitted by Wales TUC (COV0076) About The
    Written evidence submitted by Wales TUC (COV0076) About the Wales TUC The Wales Trades Union Congress is the voice of Wales at work, our aim is to make Wales a fair work nation. As the largest democratic membership based civic body in Wales, we speak for approximately 400,000 union members of our 49 affiliated unions. Proudly part of the TUC and the wider international union movement, the Wales TUC is the devolved authority for unions in Wales. What additional financial support does the Welsh economy require in order to survive during the pandemic and to recover afterwards? Government investment in Wales’ infrastructure and public services was vital before the coronavirus pandemic hit and is all the more pressing now. Wales needs to urgently move towards our net zero-carbon target, to tackle persistent inequality, and to strengthen public services that have been weakened by 10 years of austerity. Meeting these needs now is the best way to repair the economic damage caused by the COVID 19. With government borrowing costs at record lows, there has rarely been a more urgent need for government to invest. This investment – across the private and public sector can not only help create demand in the economy but also be used to directly create and support jobs. We have set out many of our investment priorities in our new Wales TUC report A Green Recovery and a Just Transition1 and, at a UK level, in Rebuilding after Recession2. They include: Investing in tidal lagoon projects Building new green social housing and retrofitting existing social housing.
    [Show full text]
  • Workforce Partnership Council (WPC) Joint Statement on Paid Leave for Staff Experiencing Domestic Abuse
    Workforce Partnership Council (WPC) Joint Statement on Paid Leave for Staff Experiencing Domestic Abuse The Workforce Partnership Council (WPC) is a tripartite social partnership structure of the trade unions, employers and Welsh Government covering the devolved public services in Wales and the forum for cross-public services workforce matters. The WPC is committed to promoting equality in the work place and recognises the profound impact domestic abuse can have on an individual. For this reason the WPC supports the provision of paid leave to members of staff across the devolved public services who are experiencing domestic abuse and are asking all devolved public service organisations to make an express commitment to provide paid leave for staff experiencing domestic abuse, where appropriate, in their special leave or domestic abuse policies. The Impact of Domestic Abuse and the Importance of Paid Leave The effect of domestic abuse is wide ranging. Members of staff may need time off work to access legal or financial advice, to arrange child care or alternative accommodation and to seek medical advice. For this reason the WPC believes it is important for devolved public service organisations in Wales to have policies to support staff experiencing domestic abuse and to make provision for paid leave where appropriate within these or special leave policies. The WPC believes that such policies provide survivors with peace of mind, support and gives them vital reassurance that they will not be financially penalised as they deal with the effects of domestic abuse. The WPC recognises that there are many organisations across the devolved public services in Wales which provide paid leave to help support members of staff experiencing domestic abuse and it wishes to acknowledge the good practice that exists.
    [Show full text]
  • Representativeness of the European Social Partner Organisations: Education
    Representativeness of the European social partner organisations: Education Objectives of study Economic background National level of interest representation European level of interest representation Commentary References Annex: List of abbreviations This report is available in electronic format only. Wyattville Road, Loughlinstown, Dublin 18, Ireland. - Tel: (+353 1) 204 31 00 - Fax: 282 42 09 / 282 64 56 e-mail: [email protected] - website: www.eurofound.europa.eu This study sets out to provide the necessary information for establishing and assisting sectoral social dialogue in the education sector. The report has three main parts: a summary of the sector’s economic background; an analysis of the social partner organisations in all EU Member States, with special emphasis on their membership, their role in collective bargaining/employment regulation and public policy, and their national and European affiliations; and an analysis of the relevant European organisations, in particular their membership composition and their capacity to negotiate. The aim of the EIRO series of representativeness studies is to identify the relevant national and supranational social partner organisations in the field of industrial relations in selected sectors. The impetus for these studies arises from the goal of the European Commission to recognise the representative social partner organisations to be consulted under the EC Treaty provisions. Hence, this study is designed to provide the basic information required to establish and evaluate sectoral social dialogue. Objectives of study The aim of this representativeness study is to identify the relevant national and supranational associational actors – that is the trade unions and employer associations – in the field of industrial relations in the education sector, and to show how these actors relate to the sector’s European interest associations of labour and business.
    [Show full text]
  • Consultation Response
    RAS 22 Ymchwiliad i ffoaduriaid a cheiswyr lloches yng Nghymru Inquiry into refugees and asylum seekers in Wales Ymateb gan: Cymdeithas Genedlaethol yr Ysgolfeistri ac Athrawesau Response from: National Association of Schoolmasters and Women Teachers 1. The NASUWT welcomes the opportunity to submit written evidence to the Equality, Local Government and Communities Committee (ELGCC) Inquiry into refugees and asylum seekers in Wales. 2. The NASUWT is the largest teachers’ union in Wales representing teachers and school leaders. GENERAL COMMENTS 3. The NASUWT acknowledges that the Refugee and Asylum Seeker Delivery Plan 2016-2019 (the Delivery Plan) seeks to present a holistic approach to supporting refugees and asylum seekers and welcomes the statement in the Ministerial Foreword that it contains: ‘…the collaborative actions which will enable asylum seekers and refugees to have the opportunities to learn, thrive and contribute to the economic, environmental, social and cultural life of Wales.’ 4. The NASUWT views those collaborative actions as vital to supporting schools and colleges to meet the needs of refugee and asylum-seeker children and their families. 5. The Union maintains that schools and colleges must be resourced and funded effectively around all necessary aspects of the integration of refugee and asylum seeker children and families into the whole school community and that cross-agency working related to the eight areas of collaboration identified in the Delivery Plan, which in itself must be funded NASUWT The largest teachers’ union in Wales Yr undeb athrawon mwyaf yng Nghymru 1 appropriately, must be available to school and college communities who are often the first point of contact for refugee families.
    [Show full text]
  • Health and Safety Reps Handbook 2020 (England)
    NASUWT England The Teachers’ Union Health and Safety Representatives’ Handbook Health and Safety Calendar Events Dates Health and safety inspections Meetings of school/college Health and Safety Committee NASUWT training courses NASUWT and other briefings This handbook, issued to all NASUWT Health and Safety Representatives, gives an overview of a range of health and safety topics and should be read in conjunction with other sources listed in the margins and the Health and Safety section of the NASUWT website. From the General Secretary Dear Colleague The NASUWT approach to health, safety and welfare at work stems from the view that health is a positive state of wellbeing, not simply the absence of injury or disease, and that work should enhance the health of workers and not undermine it. In the workplace, the NASUWT Health and Safety Representative is central to the work of the Union team. By working in partnership with the NASUWT Workplace Representative and other members active in the NASUWT, including your Local Association Secretary and your Health and Safety Co-ordinator, you can make a significant difference to the working environment. Improving the working environment in schools and colleges is a key responsibility for the NASUWT Health and Safety Representative. Organising around health and safety activity is an ideal way to engage NASUWT members in this activity and demonstrate the value of union membership. Research shows that a well-organised and unionised workplace is more likely to be safer and healthier. I hope that you will find this handbook useful. The first section contains basic information about the role and functions of Health and Safety Representatives and outlines the support that you can expect from the Union, including training opportunities.
    [Show full text]
  • SOUTH WEST TUC DIRECTORY 2021 Working Shoulder to Shoulder with Trade Unions Since 1921
    SOUTH WEST TUC DIRECTORY 2021 Working shoulder to shoulder with trade unions since 1921. In 2021, Thompsons will have been fighting for the injured and mistreated for 100 years. The fight continues, as does our commitment to the trade union and Labour movement, changing lives for the better. 0800 0 224 224 www.thompsonstradeunion.law SOUTH WEST TUC DIRECTORY Welcome to the South West South West TUC TUC Directory. The unions listed Church House, Church Road, here represent around half a Filton, Bristol BS34 7BD million members in the South 0117 947 0521 [email protected] West, covering every aspect of www.tuc.org.uk/southwest working life. The agreements twitter: @tucsouthwest unions reach with employers benefit many thousands more. Regional Secretary Nigel Costley Unions provide a powerful voice [email protected] at work, a wide range of services London, East and South East and and a movement for change in South West Education Officer these hard times of austerity and Marie Hughes cut backs. [email protected] Unions champion equal Secretary opportunities, promote learning Tanya Parker and engage with partners to [email protected] develop a sustainable economy Policy and Campaigns Support for the South West. Officer Ines Lage West Country workers are facing [email protected] a squeeze on incomes whilst pay at the top continues to soar. Public services are being cut and privatised and rights at work attacked. There is a lot to do and the key is to build strong unions to speak up for people at work. The world of unions can Nigel Costley be complicated and this South West TUC Directory will be a useful Regional Secretary guide.
    [Show full text]
  • Trade Union Rep Toolkit Mental Health and Work How Are You?
    Unite the Union Trade Union Rep Toolkit Mental Health and Work How are you? Produced in partnership with Gofal and the Wales TUC Contents Introduction 2 What is mental health? 4 What is mental health? 5 What are mental health problems? 6 Myths and facts 7 Why is this important to your role as a rep? 8 What can you do as a trade union rep? 10 Tips for trade union reps 11 Potential activities in the workplace 12 Prevention, recovery and return to work 13 How can employers support good mental health & wellbeing? 14 What can employers do? 15 Whole person approach to wellbeing 16 Preventing poor mental health in the workplace 18 Supporting people’s recovery 20 Supporting people’s return to work 22 Workplace policies 24 Sign the Time to Change Wales organisational pledge 26 Become a Mindful Employer 27 Information, advice and resources 28 Spot the signs 29 Mental health and the law 30 Where can people find help? 32 Advice and support helplines 33 Improvements to local mental health services 34 Feeling unwell at work? 36 Looking after trade union reps and activists 38 Five Ways to Wellbeing 39 Time to Change Wales 40 1 Introduction This guide has been commissioned by the Unite Wales Disabled Members committee in recognition of the increasing number of workers who have reported experiencing mental health problems. It has been developed by Unite in partnership with the Wales TUC and Gofal using information and research from numerous resources, all of which are credited throughout. This guide provides information on supporting members with mental health issues in the workplace and practical steps that and be taken by Unite reps and employers to promote a healthy workplace.
    [Show full text]
  • (Public Pack)Agenda Document for Petitions Committee, 09/07/2019 09
    ------------------------ Public Document Pack ------------------------ Agenda - Petitions Committee Meeting Venue: For further information contact: Committee Room 1 - Senedd Graeme Francis - Committee Clerk Meeting date: 9 July 2019 Kath Thomas – Deputy Clerk Meeting time: 09.00 0300 200 6565 [email protected] ------ 1 Introduction, apologies, substitutions and declarations of interest (Pages 1 - 51) 2 New petitions 2.1 P-05-882 Transforming the response for older people experiencing domestic abuse – a call for action (Pages 52 - 72) 2.2 P-05-885 Accessible and Inclusive Public Transport for Citizens with Learning Disabilities in Wales (Pages 73 - 82) 2.3 P-05-887 Stop regional AMs elected to represent specific parties from defecting (Pages 83 - 89) 2.4 P-05-889 Labelling of Religiously Slaughtered Meat (Pages 90 - 99) 2.5 P-05-890 Second Home Tax (Pages 100 - 107) 2.6 P-05-891 National Reading and Numeracy Tests for children from as young as age 6 need to be discontinued with immediate effect (Pages 108 - 115) 2.7 P-05-892 Appoint a Learning Disability Commissioner for Wales (Pages 116 - 125) 3 Updates to previous petitions Economy and Transport 3.1 P-05-738 Public Petition for the Dinas Powys By-Pass (Pages 126 - 131) 3.2 P-05-748 School Buses for School Children (Pages 132 - 136) Environment, Energy and Rural Affairs 3.3 P-05-743 End the Exotic Pet Trade in Wales (Pages 137 - 141) 3.4 P-05-869 Declare a Climate Emergency and fit all policies with zero-carbon targets (Pages 142 - 147) 3.5 P-05-876 Protection of Red & Amber
    [Show full text]
  • ISSC WP 2004-12 Which Path
    IISSSCC DDIISSCCUUSSSSIOONN PPAAPPEERR SSEERRIIEESS Which Path? Domestic Adaptation to Economic Internationalization in Ireland Dr Niamh Hardiman Niamh Hardiman held a Senior Research Fellowship from the Irish Research Council for Humanities and Social Sciences, 2003/4. She is Director of the Governance Research Programme at ISSC and a member of the Politics Department, UCD. This paper is produced as part of the Governance Research Programme at ISSC; however the views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ISSC. The paper was written while the author held a Senior Research Fellowship from the Irish Research Council for Humanities and Social Sciences. All errors and omissions remain those of the author. Any comments, queries or suggestions relating to this paper are most welcome ISSC WP 2004/1 2 Which Path? Domestic Adaptation to Economic Internationalization in Ireland Abstract The growing integration of international markets raises the question of how, and to what extent, domestic political processes within states continue to matter. The thesis that markets force a ‘race to the bottom’ and the destruction of the welfare state has been discredited; there is continuing scope for diversity. Two patterns have commonly been identified. Continental European countries cluster together around politically coordinated adjustment strategies, while the liberal, Anglo-American countries adopt ever more market-driven responses. The new EU member states in central Europe and the Balkans have been expected to join the latter category. However, a third overlooked possibility exists – that market-oriented adjustment might continue to be strongly politically mediated, in line with expectations about the incentives facing small open economies, even in liberal economies.
    [Show full text]
  • Universe, the CMI Global Network Fund
    Universe, The CMI Global Network Fund Prospectus November 2018 VISA 2018/114612-762-0-PC L'apposition du visa ne peut en aucun cas servir d'argument de publicité Luxembourg, le 2018-11-23 Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier - 2 - UNIVERSE, THE CMI GLOBAL NETWORK FUND This prospectus (the "Prospectus") is published in connection with the continuous offer to investors to subscribe for thirty-five Sub-Funds, some of them containing two or more Classes of Shares in UNIVERSE, THE CMI GLOBAL NETWORK FUND. The Fund is an investment company organised as a société anonyme under the laws of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg and is qualified as a société d'investissement à capital variable (SICAV). The Fund is established for an undetermined duration but may be dissolved by resolution of an extraordinary general meeting of Shareholders. The Fund was incorporated in Luxembourg on 12 April 1990 and its Articles were published in the Mémorial C, Recueil des Sociétés et Associations (the "Mémorial") on 27 June 1990. They were amended for the last time by notarial deed of 30 December 2014 which has been published in the Mémorial on 21 February 2015. The Articles provide that the exclusive object of the Fund is to place the funds available to it in transferable securities, money market instruments and other permitted assets of any kind with the purpose of spreading investment risks and affording its Shareholders the results of the management of its Sub-Funds. It is subject to the Luxembourg laws of 10 August 1915 on commercial companies (as amended) and to the Part I of the Luxembourg Law of 17 December 2010 on undertakings for collective investments, as may be amended from time to time (the "2010 Law").
    [Show full text]