Diocese of Salford announces divestment from fossil fuels

This week, the Diocese of Salford announced its decision to divest from BP PLC and Shell PLC.

The diocese – which runs our Laudato Si’ Centre – is one of 12 Catholic dioceses in England and Wales to have made this commitment.

Read its statement regarding the decision below:

As a Diocese our investments are guided by the principle of stewardship, putting our care for people and our common home at the centre of all that we do.

We are committed to being a responsible and active investor, using our influence to challenge companies to set ambitious targets and make the lasting change we need. As part of this commitment, we also regularly review our investments monitoring our impact and responding to changing landscapes.

In recent weeks it has become clear that both BP PLC and Shell PLC have altered their stance and are no longer ambitious enough in their decarbonisation pathways and transition plans. We would be failing in our duty to our common home and our brothers and sisters, if we decided not to act.

We must take a stand against companies that do not align with our principles and that put their profits ahead of the common good. We will therefore divest from both companies by the end of 2023.

This ends our direct investment in fossil fuel production.

We will continue to use our voice to champion for dialogue, change, and action.

The Diocese of Salford’s Investment Policy

Our investments are managed via our Investment Committee on behalf of the Trustees. The committee and the wider trustees acknowledge the importance of being good stewards of our donations from past, present, and future generations. They look to balance the immediate and future needs of the Diocese while ensuring that our Catholic Principles are upheld in our portfolio.

We do this by being a responsible and active investor. This is about active participation through the investments we hold in key issues as they affect people and planet.

For example, our commitment to decarbonise our investment portfolio over time, may mean encouraging and having solidarity with firms that actively pursue measurable ‘just transition’ decarbonisation targets. It may also mean taking action where the dignity of the human being is compromised by action or failure to act by a particular firm or investment.

This is about using our voice to argue for change and action. Trying to be a force for good can require participation rather than just protest. We do accept that sometimes divestment is the answer. Like our September 2023 decision we regularly review our investments monitoring our impact and responding to changing landscapes.

You can read our full Responsible Investment Policy here: https://www.dioceseofsalford.org.uk/diocese/policies/