Morley appoints new lead manager for Norwich UK Equity Fund

Morley Fund Management today announced that Mervyn Douglas has been appointed as the lead fund manager of the Norwich UK Equity Fund. Currently the deputy fund manager, Mervyn takes control of the fund from today - 24 November 2003.

Veteran fund manager David Lis, who has managed the Ł215 million fund for the past three years, will focus his attention on managing the higher risk – higher outperformance target Norwich UK Growth and Morley UK Focus Funds.

Mervyn Douglas, 28, joined Morley in November 2002 from Schroder Investment Management and has been working as deputy fund manager to David Lis since that time. He has also been lead fund manager of the Ł79 million Norwich UK Income and Growth Fund for the past year.

Commenting on the promotion, Alan Gadd, Managing Director - UK and European Retail at Morley Fund Management, said: "At Morley, we believe in developing our talent and Mervyn Douglas has the knowledge, skills and experience to become lead manager of the Norwich UK Equity Fund. We have been impressed by his discipline and flair for managing mainstream UK equities and believe investors will continue to benefit from Mervyn working together with David Lis."

Norwich UK Equity Fund manager Mervyn Douglas said: "I’m looking forward to further building up the performance track record of the Norwich UK Equity Fund. My focus is FTSE 350 stocks, while David Lis will concentrate on identifying emerging growth companies, which his retail funds have a bias towards. We do not anticipate any material changes to the Fund as the holdings already reflect the fact that David and I have been working closely together for the past year."

The Norwich UK Equity Fund is Norwich Union’s key equity fund for the 2004 Isa season. The fund holds between 50-60 stocks, with around 80% in ‘undervalued growth’ stocks and around 20% in ‘special situation’ stocks.

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For further information please contact:
Fiona Baker, Head of Corporate Communications 020 7809 8617
Morley Fund Management
mobile: 07736 883 832

Notes to Editors
About the Norwich UK Equity Fund

• Size: Ł215m
• Annual Management Charge: 1.50% (Share class A)
• Launch Date: 25th November 1974
• Sector: UK All Companies
• Benchmark: FTSE All-Share

Mervyn Douglas

• Prior to joining Morley in November 2002 he worked for Schroders where he was UK Equity Fund Manager for a range of Pension Fund clients. Mervyn holds a BA (Hons) in law from Nottingham University and is a member of the Institute of Investment Management Research (IIMR).

David Lis

• David joined the firm (as Norwich Union Investment Management) in 1997. Previously, he spent five years as a director of an Investor Relations Consultancy advising a number of major UK and international companies on their financial communications. David has gained considerable fund management experience from Windsor Investment Management, a company he founded and managed; Morgan Grenfell and J Rothschild Investment Management as a fund manager; and NatWest as an investment analyst.

• Morley Fund Management (‘Morley’) is an independently managed, London based, asset management business with over Ł107 billion* under management (as at 30.09.03). It actively manages a diverse range of asset classes and employs in the region of 900 staff worldwide based in London, Singapore and an associate office in Boston**.
• Morley is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Aviva group and manages both institutional and retail funds under the Morley brand. It also acts as investment manager for a range of retail investment funds, marketed in the UK by Norwich Union, and international funds marketed under the Aviva Funds brand.

*Not including mortgage assets
**Morley Fund Management International Limited, an Aviva company

Awards

• Fund Manager of the Year - Pensions Week Awards 2002
• Specialist Manager of the Year - UK Pensions Awards 2002
• Insurance Fund Manager of the Year (awarded to Norwich Union) - Standard and Poor’s 2002
• Sustainable and Ethical Investment and Asset Management Award - Liveable City Awards 2002
• Pensions Management Provider Awards 2002 – Commended for Best SRI Fund Manager and Best Fixed Income Fund Manager

Further information about Morley Fund Management can be found at www.morleyfm.com

Except where stated otherwise, the source of all information is Morley Fund Management as at (24.11.03)

The value of an investment in the Norwich Union UK Equity Fund and any income from it can go down as well as up. You may not get back the original amount invested.

Calls may be recorded for training and monitoring purposes.

Morley Fund Management is a business name of Morley Investment Services Limited, registered in England No. 1973412. A member of the Norwich Union Marketing Group, members of which are authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority for life assurance, pensions and investments. Registered Office: No. 1 Poultry, London EC2R 8EJ. A member of the Investment Management Association.

Morley Fund Management is also a business name of Morley Fund Management Limited and Morley Fund Management International Limited. All are Aviva companies.

Contact us at Morley Fund Management, PO Box 530, York YO90 1WA.

MFM/03/1223