CSIA Submission to EU: The EU Corporate Governance Framework

In April 2011, the EU issued a Green Paper entitled The EU Corporate Governance Framework to launch a public consultation on possible ways forward to improve the corporate governance framework in Europe as part of its commitment to a single market.  The EU believes that corporate governance and corporate social responsibility are key elements in building people’s trust in the single market.  Corporate governance is traditionally defined as the system by which companies are managed and controlled. The consultation covers a number of issues such as how to improve the diversity and functioning of the boards of directors and the monitoring and enforcement of existing national corporate governance codes, and how to enhance the engagement of shareholders.

One of the lessons of the global financial crisis is that corporate governance, until now usually based on self-regulation, was not as effective as it could have been . CSIA [Corporate Secretaries International Association] members are acutely aware of corporate governance issues associated with the negative impacts felt by the crisis and believe it is timely to examine the existing corporate governance regimes across Europe and review if there are measures that could be taken to improve the actions of boards of directors, management or shareholders.  CSIA believes that the various corporate governance frameworks in its member countries provide excellent comparative viewpoints from which to engage in this review. 

Please click here to view a copy of CSIA’s submission.

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