Eighteen investors representing £1.8 trillion (US&2.2 trillion) in AUM have written to the chairs of 35 high-emitting FTSE 350 companies asking them to provide a climate transition plan vote ahead of next year’s AGM season. Investors have for several years called on companies to provide such votes to enhance transparency and accountability given the substantial climate-related financial risks. The 18 investors include Local Authority Pension Fund Forum (LAPFF), CCLA Investment Management, Sarasin & Partners, and Ethos Foundation, among others. “Having such a vote will enable shareholders in the first instance to express their view on transition plans through a specific resolution rather than immediately voting against the chair or another board member,” the letter said. The intervention comes amid the backdrop of increased focus on mandated climate transition planning, through the UK’s Transition Plan Taskforce. In France, a proposed new law, ‘Say On Climate’, would require listed companies to put their transition plans to an advisory vote every three years with an annual vote on the implementation of the strategy. Councillor Doug McMurdo, Chair of LAPFF, said: “Climate change is one of the biggest risks facing investors. Therefore, it only makes sense that companies provide shareholders with a vote on how they are planning and delivering the transition to a decarbonised economy. For those companies not providing its own investors with the opportunity to have a say on climate plans, the focus of shareholder attention will inevitably first fall on director elections.”
LAPFF with investors representing £1.8tn AUM, have written to FTSE companies in high emitting sectors calling for a transition plan vote.
We are urging companies to provide such votes to enable shareholders to express their views on climate strategies.https://t.co/neD6N35nzd
— LAPFF (@LAPFForum) October 3, 2023
