Millions wiped off UK local government pensions due to coal crash, analysis shows

Members of the scheme would each be hundreds of pounds better off if funds had been divested from fossil fuels, say campaigners

The pension funds of millions of local government workers have lost hundreds of millions of pounds in the last 18 months, as the value of the world's biggest coal mining companies has crashed, according to a new analysis.

The Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) provides pensions for 4.6m people, including social workers, school staff, bus drivers, librarians, park attendants and housing officers. The losses estimated by campaign group Platform are equivalent to hundreds of pounds per member.