The Impact of Enlightened Shareholder Value

This paper documents and analyses the findings of a study conducted in relation to selected reports of all of the retail companies that are listed on the FTSE 100 in order to ascertain the impact of enlightened shareholder value on UK corporate governance. The findings are also analysed in light of other studies and commentary

An evaluation of sustainability in large British companies

This article undertakes an assessment of the sustainability efforts of some of the largest companies that are listed on the FTSE 100 (a share index composed of the 100 largest companies that are listed on the London Stock Exchange according to market capitalisation). It provides empirical insights into how large listed British companies are addressing sustainability and their efforts in terms of incorporating sustainability factors into their business operations. The study was based on an extended content analysis of each company’s annual and sustainability reports. Our findings demonstrate that companies are trying to integrate sustainability in their business strategies even though there are variations in their efforts. There are indications that the majority of the companies have been able to embed sustainability in their strategy and operations and are now attempting to establish goals for further improvement. We found strong evidence of willingness to engage with relevant stakeholders to evaluate which sustainability issues are of importance to the particular companies and then to communicate to those relevant stakeholders the measures that have been taken to integrate sustainability in their business strategies. However, our findings also revealed areas where there is a need for further improvement such as compliance with international standards for sustainability reporting and establishment of better frameworks to enhance their sustainability efforts

The implications of a changing climate on agricultural land classification in England and Wales

The agricultural land classification (ALC) of England and Wales is a formal method of assessing the quality of agricultural land and guiding future land use. It assesses several soil, site and climate criteria and classifies land according to whichever is the most limiting. A common approach is required for calculating the necessary agroclimatic parameters over time in order to determine the effects of changes in the climate on land grading. In the present paper, climatic parameters required by the ALC classification have been re-calculated from a range of primary climate data, available from the Meteorological Office's UKCP09 historical dataset, provided as 5 km rasters for every month from 1914 to 2000. Thirty-year averages of the various agroclimatic properties were created for 1921–50, 1931–60, 1941–70, 1951–80, 1961–90 and 1971–2000. Soil records from the National Soil Inventory on a 5 km grid across England and Wales were used to determine the required soil and site parameters for determining ALC grade. Over the 80-year period it was shown that the overall climate was coolest during 1951–80. However, the area of land estimated in retrospect as ‘best and most versatile (BMV) land’ (Grades 1, 2 and 3a) probably peaked in the 1951–80 period as the cooler climate resulted in fewer droughty soils, more than offsetting the land which was downgraded by the climate being too cold. Overall there has been little change in the proportions of ALC grades among the six periods once all 10 factors (climate, gradient, flooding, texture, depth, stoniness, chemical, soil wetness, droughtiness and erosion) are taken into account. This is because it is rare for changes in climate variables all to point in the same direction in terms of ALC. Thus, a reduction in rainfall could result in higher grades in wetter areas but lead to lower classification in drier areas

Transforming corporate governance in Chinese corporations: a journey not a destination

The article offers a systemic, historical, and rigorous study of the transformation of Chinese corporate governance, focusing on its development from a totally administrative model, being one which relies on government and administrative power and imposes on corporations’ controllers administrative duties and objectives, to a hybrid model which has both administrative and economic governance characteristics. The article assesses whether administrative power will hinder corporate governance transformation in China on its journey towards a sound and sustainable model. We opine that the government continues to have a key role to play in corporate governance in China which makes administrative interference and power something that is embedded in corporate governance regimes through public and political policies, law enforcement, and strategic management policies for corporations. The administrative involvement might sacrifice efficiency, and effective market and corporate responses. However, it is observed that it may bring comparative advantages for Chinese corporate governance in terms of supporting long term strategic planning and the setting of multiple goals for State Owned Enterprises (SOEs, hereinafter), with government interference producing immediate action in order to prevent market failure

British Steel: is it a wind up?

Key Points The recent compulsory liquidation of British Steel raises a number of fundamental questions about the nature of compulsory liquidation. Is it possible for compulsory liquidation to be used in a manner similar to administration to rescue (part of) a company’s undertaking with the costs of the process being picked up by the taxpayer rather than met by secured creditors? In this article we consider the reasons why the court ordered the liquidation of British Steel and more broadly consider the nature of compulsory liquidation and on whose behalf and for what purposes it may be ordered

Accountability in corporate governance in China and the impact of Guanxi as a double-edged sword

Accountability is an essential aspect of corporate governance and it has been argued that the “wenze” system of accountability in China comes very close to the accountability systems developed in Anglo-American corporate governance. This Article examines the role of cultural factors, namely guanxi and its derivatives, in corporate governance in China to determine what effect, if any, these cultural factors have on the operation and development of the “wenze” system in large listed companies. The Article specifically considers whether the cultural elements affect accountability, and if so, how and to what extent. It also explores whether these cultural factors are good, bad, or neutral as far as the development of accountability in fostering good corporate governance is concerned. The Article advocates a realistic, functional, and culturally sensitive corporate governance accountability system in China, under which guanxi and its derivatives will not be regarded as a substitute for accountability, but will work within the “wenze” system of accountability. Meanwhile, the Article’s analysis also demonstrates that guanxi is a double-edge sword, for while it can be an impediment to accountability, it is not totally inimical to ensuring that there is accountability

Harmonisation of Avoidance Rules in European Union Insolvencies: The Critical Elements in Formulating a Scheme

Only the harmonisation of laws is seen as being able to solve legal uncertainty resulting from legal diversity, but, notwithstanding the advent of the EC Regulation on Insolvency Proceedings, thus far there is no real harmonisation of insolvency laws in the EU. There are indications that the European Commission (EC) has been considering the formulation of a scheme for the harmonisation of the rules that apply in insolvency proceedings to permit the avoidance of transactions entered into prior to the commencement of insolvency proceedings. On this basis this article identifies and analyses those factors that will need to be considered and addressed in the formulation of any harmonised scheme, as well as ascertaining the problems that these factors may cause in the construction of such a scheme. This is a critical issue, for it is all well and good to say that there should be harmonisation, but how that is done, what must be taken into account and what is included in any harmonised scheme is another matter and requires careful thought and consultation