UK investor coalition pushes for climate votes at FTSE100 companies

A coalition of investors representing approximately £1.6trn in assets under management has called on the chairs of 76 FTSE 100 companies that have not yet put their climate transition plans to a vote to give shareholders a say.

The signatories note that a fifth of FTSE 100 companies have already provided investors with the opportunity to approve their climate plans, but they are pushing for a broader expansion of shareholder rights on climate issues.

The letter argues that allowing shareholders to vote on climate transition plans would enable them to make more informed investment and stewardship decisions. The signatories also emphasise that companies should outline their climate strategies within these transition plans and include material climate-related impacts in their financial statements.

Councillor Doug McMurdo, chair of the LAPFF, said: “AGMs provide shareholders with the opportunity to support a board’s approach to key strategic decisions and hold them to account for their management of material risks and opportunities. Given the considerable climate-related risks that major companies face and the implications for long-term company success, we are encouraging boards to provide investors with the chance to support their climate transition strategies or raise specific concerns.”

The targeted companies range from pharmaceutical firms such as AstraZeneca to BAE Systems and Intercontinental Hotels. They also include a notable number of financial services companies, from banks such as HSBC and Lloyds to insurers such as Phoenix and Prudential, as well as asset management firms like Schroders.

Energy firms are notably absent from the list as they have been the target of an earlier campaign.  In 2023, LAPFF and CCLA led an investor group writing to 35 of the highest emitting companies in the FTSE 350 index including those in the oil and gas, utilities and mining sectors. LAPFF and CCLA said that their approach had so far received twenty-one responses with two firms intending to hold a vote at the 2024 AGM and one intending to hold a vote at its 2025 AGM. Five companies had previously put their transition plans to a vote.

Historically, energy firms have been the focus of shareholder pressure on transition plans, and some have already put transition plans to a vote. A case in point is Shell, which put its updated Energy Transition Strategy to a vote earlier this year. Although the proposals were criticised by climate campaigners for not outlining emission reductions within this decade, the plan nevertheless received the backing of a clear majority of shareholders.