James Murdoch's decision to step down as chairman of BSkyB has been welcomed by the Local Authority Pension Fund Forum (LAPFF).

In a statement the association of 55 UK public sector pension funds said it thought "the decision of James Murdoch to relinquish the chair of BSkyB is a sensible one"

LAPFF's chairman Ian Greenwood said: "I think everybody recognises that Murdoch's ongoing chairmanship of the company was problematic. BSkyB needs to put some distance between itself and the events at News International, and these board changes go some way to achieving that. James Murdoch's decision is the right one, and will be welcomed by shareholders interested in the company's long-term success."

Last November, ahead of BSkyB's 2011 AGM, the forum issued a statement advising its members to oppose Rupert Murdoch's son James' re-election and instead vote for the re-election of the media giant's deputy chair Nicholas Ferguson. The forum was concerned about Murdoch's independence as a son of News International boss Rupert Murdoch and of the risk of "reputational contagion" from the phone hacking scandal.

The forum's member funds currently have combined assets of over £100 billion. One of its long term goals is to promote the long-term investment interests of local authority pension funds, and "to maximise their influence as shareholders to promote corporate responsibility and high standards of corporate governance amongst the companies in which it invests."

First published 04.04.2012

azeevalkink@wilmington.co.uk