HSF Governance Insights 2024
Striving for good governance in uncertain times  

As those involved in governance know all too well, hardly a day seems to go by without new legislation, regulation or guidance being proposed, developed or implemented. In our piece "All change please" we focus on the latest governance reform proposals and their current status and ask whether they will actually achieve their ambition of improving the UK business landscape. 

Corporate reporting is one of the areas where there continues to be change, with additional reporting obligations seeming to have been viewed by government and regulators as the silver bullet to right a number of perceived wrongs.  With the level of annual disclosures required of companies at an all-time high, in our piece "Seeing the wood for the trees" we ask whether we are at peak reporting, whether investors are being provided with decision-useful information and whether in the short term at least, corporates can look forward to a lighter reporting load.

Staying with company and investor relations, in "Understanding is a two-way street" we consider the role of the AGM, a mainstay in the corporate calendar of all listed companies, and ask whether it remains a vehicle for shareholder engagement and how dialogue with investors can be improved.  We also explore the role that the annual report can play in investor relations and how it can be used to leverage these relations.

No AGM season is complete without media headlines on executive pay, and the 2024 AGM season is proving to be no exception. With the topic still commanding attention and with potential reform in this area ahead, we ask "What's up in the world of executive pay"?

Moving to directors' duties, in our piece "Directors' duties under siege" we consider the current state of the law in this area and why directors, especially non-executive directors, can take comfort that the status quo in terms of the orthodox view of directors' duties is prevailing - at least for now.

In May this year, before the General Election was called, we were delighted to record an interview with Richard Moriarty, the CEO of the Financial Reporting Council. We discussed a wide range of topics including his role and experiences to date, his reflections and observations in relation to the recent UK Corporate Governance Code consultation and the ongoing review of the Stewardship Code, what the future holds for the FRC and why he encourages boards and governance professionals to think for themselves.

Then finally, with the General Election taking place on 4 July 2024, in the latest edition of our "On the Horizon" podcast with Paul Butcher, Director of Public Policy at HSF, we consider the corporate governance related proposals contained in the manifestos published by the main political parties and discuss the implications for businesses operating in the UK.

We hope that you enjoy this series of articles and look forward to receiving any feedback you have on the issues they raise.