Aviva's Waygood: Financial system must start to pressure governments on climate change

Speaking at City Week 2022

The financial system must begin to hold governments to account on climate change, said Steve Waygood, chief responsible investment officer for Aviva Investors, in a conversation with Michael Sheren, senior adviser at the Bank of England.

Speaking at London's City Week conference today (25 April), Waygood emphasised that while the role of finance had so far been pressuring companies to reduce emissions, now was the time for the sector to start pressuring governments to take serious action. When the financial sector loaned to governments, Waygood asked "how many of us genuinely hold them to account"? He said that as investors the industry currently just push countries to make positive steps while loaning money. However, he believes "at some point soon, it will be right" to issue conditional loans based on climate polici...