Tag Archives: companies

Company law needs to change to encompass environmental and societal responsibilities

By Peter Davison | Tue 26th January 2021 - 1:57 pm

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We continue to destroy our only planet, driven on by the moneymen and women. Politicians, in awe of the economists, see growth as the answer to every question. Anyone who stops to think for a moment can see that more and more growth is not any sort of a solution to today’s problems on a planet with limited resources.

This view of economics is hard wired into our society through the legal system. Most company directors have as a prime responsibility, that they must maximise the money made by their shareholders. Failure to do this means that they can be sued. Without changing company law to expand director responsibilities to include environmental and societal issues, we will remain locked into money being the measure of everything. And consequent ongoing environmental destruction.

Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged climate change | 5 Comments

Jo Swinson MP writes… Liberal Democrat aim of transparent company ownership becomes a reality

By Jo Swinson MP | Thu 31st October 2013 - 1:48 pm

Today the Prime Minister announced the very welcome news that the UK will have an open public register of beneficial ownership – something Liberal Democrats have long campaigned for. By making business more transparent, so that anyone can find out who really owns and controls a company, we strengthen the image of the UK as a clean and trusted place to do business.

As it stands UK companies currently have a register which lists who directly holds their shares but you can’t always tell who the ultimate beneficial owner is. With no duty for companies to hold this information individuals can …