UK: TUC Fund Manager Voting Survey 2009

The Trades Union Congress has today published its Fund Manager Voting Survey 2009: a survey of the voting and engagement records and processes of institutional investors. According to the TUC, the survey "is intended to give trustees information on how various fund managers exercise voting rights in relation to controversial issues at company AGMs, and an insight into voting and engagement processes".

The survey contains full or part responses from 23 organisations (29 organisations did not respond) and covers the 13 month period 1 July 2007 to 31 July 2008. The survey finds (to quote directly from it):

There is a clear divide amongst investors in their willingness to challenge management. At one end of the spectrum, eight respondents supported over 90% of management proposals on which voting decisions were sought. At the other end six respondents supported less than 50% of management proposals.

Investors say that remuneration is the issue over which it is most likely that they will oppose management. This is confirmed in the voting data supplied to the survey. Respondents do not appear to have had a particular issue with remuneration arrangements at UK banks, as votes on the banks’ remuneration reports are not out of line with those at other companies. Only a single investor in the sample – Co-operative Insurance Society – opposed the RBS acquisition of ABN Amro. All other respondents voted in favour".