Corporate Governance, Transparency and Political Spending

Corporate governance, transparency and political spending: what should be disclosed to investors?

Greater transparency is increasingly expected of government, the private sector, and civil society. The most common shareholder proposal in the US in 2014 was a resolution requesting disclosure of corporate spending on political campaigns and lobbying activities, and a proposal for a similar disclosure rule at the US Securities Exchange Commission received more than a million comment letters. Although shareholders in Canada have been less vocal on this issue, discussion about whether disclosure of company funds spent on influencing the political process is useful for investors in the Canadian context – and, if so, what it should encompass – is growing north of the border.

Join us for a closer look at this emerging corporate governance issue within Canadian capital markets.

Featuring:

• Moderator: Jeff Gray, Law Reporter, Report on Business
• Timothy Smith (Vice President, Walden Asset Management)
• Louise Grondin (Senior Vice-President, Environment and Sustainable Development, Agnico Eagle Mines Limited)
• Kevin Thomas (Director of Shareholder Engagement, SHARE)
• Carol Linnit (Managing Editor, Desmog.ca)