Members of the Dutch pension fund UWV, for workers at the public-sector Employee Insurance Agency (UWV), are split almost 50/50 on whether the pension fund should invest in the defence sector.

In a survey, members were asked how they felt about investing in weapons, such as guns. Forty-five per cent said they do not want to invest in the sector, while 43 per cent do not think it is a problem. The remaining 12 per cent were neutral.

“Most people who are against investing in weapons indicate that weapons bring a lot of misery. Think, for example, of wars or innocent victims caused by weapons. They also think investing in the arms industry is not responsible,” the pension fund stated.

“On the contrary, those in favour of investing in arms consider the protection of national security important. They also say they want to strengthen European defence. This must then be within all international laws and agreements.”

Those who are neutral about investing in the arms trade find it a “tricky subject”. For example, they think a country’s right to defend itself is important, but it is also unclear how and where weapons are used.

Investing in the defence industry has become more topical due to rising geopolitical tensions. Last year, the then Minister of Defence for the Netherlands, Kajsa Ollongren, called on pension funds to ramp up investment in defence stocks. It led to several Dutch pension funds publishing statements on their policies regarding defence investments.

In addition, UWV survey found that two-thirds of member respondents think it is important that UWV invests sustainably. However, a majority of people indicated that they were not familiar with the content of the fund’s investment policy.

As a result, UWV has said it will focus more attention on its SRI investment policy in 2025, raising awareness through newsletters and news items.

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