About a third of pension funds in the UK still fail to run public, open tenders for fiduciary management contracts, according to new figures that are likely to fuel the row over how investment consultants win these mandates.

A survey of 33 UK pension funds by Buck Consultants found 12 of them did not pick their manager through an open tender, the same proportion as in 2014. The figure is significant because many fund managers want to offer the service - which combines traditional investment management with strategic advice in a one-stop-shop service - but claim they are not given the opportunity to because mandates are not put out to tender.