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Corporate Governance

The Board is committed to the highest standards of corporate governance and intends that the Company should comply with all requirements of the UK Corporate Governance Code that are applicable to it as a ‘smaller company’ (defined in the UK Corporate Governance Code as being a company below the FTSE 350).

Responsibility for governance matters lies with the Board, which is accountable to shareholders for the activities of the Group.  Further details of the ways in which the Company complies with the UK Corporate Governance Code can be found in the Corporate Governance Report of the Company’s annual report and accounts for the year ended 31 December 2022. As at 31 December 2022, the Board considers that the Company is compliant with all aspects of the UK Corporate Governance Code that are applicable to it as a ‘smaller company’ with the exception of provisions 24, 40 and 41, further details can be found within the Corporate Governance Report.

Our Non-Executive team comprises of Non-Executive Chair Murray Legg, Annette Barnes, Andrew Day, Peter Harkness, Catherine Birkett and Julien Decot, all of whom are considered independent with the exception of Peter who has served on the Board as Non-Executive Director since 25 June 2009.

Peter is an experienced member of the Board with valuable sector specific skills and still a member of the Board. However, because his tenure prevents him from being independent he no longer sits on the Audit, Remuneration and Nominations Committees. There are five Independent Non-Executive Directors, who make up 62.5% of the Board.

Committees

The Audit Committee comprises Catherine Birkett, Julien Decot,  Annette Barnes and Andrew Day. It is chaired by Catherine Birkett, who is currently the Chief Financial Officer at GoCardless Limited. Prior to that, Catherine has had a number of senior finance positions, including 14 years as Chief Financial Officer at Interoute Telecommunications.

The committee meets four times in the year with the external auditors in attendance. The committee is responsible for reviewing the Interim Report and the Annual Report and accounts and it oversees the controls necessary to ensure the integrity of the financial information reported to shareholders. The Audit Committee discusses the nature, scope and findings of the audit with the external auditors, and monitors the independence of the external auditors. The committee is also responsible for considering the appointment or re-appointment of external auditors and the audit fee. The terms for the Audit Committee are available for inspection on request.

The Audit Committee discharges its responsibilities through receiving reports from management and advisers, working closely with the auditors, carrying out and reviewing risk assessment and taking counsel where appropriate in areas when required to make a judgment.

The Audit Committee has considered the need for a separate internal audit function but due to the size of the Group and procedures in place to monitor both trading performance and internal controls, it was concluded that the costs of a separate internal audit department would outweigh the benefits.

In order to maintain the independence of the external auditors, the Board has determined that non-audit work will not be offered to the external auditors unless there are clear efficiencies and value added benefits to the Group. The Audit Committee annually reviews the remuneration received by the auditors for audit services and non-audit work. The outcome of this review was that the performance of this work by the auditors was the most cost effective and also that no conflict existed between such audit and non-audit work.

The full terms of reference can be found here: Terms of reference for the Audit Committee

The Remuneration Committee comprises of Annette Barnes, Murray Legg, Andrew Day and Julien Decot. Annette Barnes Chairs the Remuneration Committee. The Remuneration Committee is responsible for determining the service contract terms, remuneration and other benefits of the executive directors, details of which are set out in the Remuneration Report.

The full terms of reference can be found here: Terms of reference for the Remuneration Committee

The Nomination Committee was established to lead the process for appointments and manage succession plans for its executives. The committee is comprised of one Executive Director, three Non-Executive Directors, including the Chair, with the casting vote going to Murray Legg, the Non-Executive Chair of the Nominations Committee. The Board is committed to ensuring that the Nomination Committee always consists of a majority of Non-Executive Directors.

The full terms of reference can be found here: Terms of reference for the Nomination Committee