6 written questions lodged at 2023 Cleanaway AGM
October 20, 2023
Here is the text of the 6 written questions lodged at the 2023 Cleanaway hybrid AGM held on October 20.
1. Victoria was one of the last states to embrace a container deposit scheme. How does the scheme design compare with other states and which state models do we think are most optimal? The Victorian scheme launches on November 1. Over what period are we expecting to invest our $40 million in the scheme?
2. Which of the proxy advisers caused last year's remuneration strike with an against recommendation. Did any of the 5 main proxy advisers - ACSI, Ownership Matters, Glass Lewis, ISS and ASA - recommend a vote against any of today's resolutions? If so, what reasons did they give? Will you disclose the proxy votes before the debate on each resolution so shareholders can ask questions about the reasons if there have been any protest votes. Also, why not disclose the proxy position to the ASX with the formal addresses to offer more timely disclosure to the market? Many companies now do this.
3. Could the CEO summarise his past LTI grants since joining the business in 2021 as to whether they are likely to vest or lapse. Also, has he ever sold any ordinary shares in the company or bought any on market without relying on an incentive scheme to build his equity position in the company? Please don't say look it up in the annual report and through ASX announcements. It's complicated and the CEO could factually summarise the situation in 60 seconds.
4. It is unusual for a director to spend 9 years on a board before appointed as the chair. Why did it take Philippe so long to land the big job? This is also the first ASX listed chairman role that Philippe has been appointed to. After his first month in the role, could Philippe explain how he is re-working his busy portfolio of board seats to make sure he has enough bandwidth to take on a big role such as chairing Cleanaway. Has he made any changes yet?
5. Could new director Clive Stiff and the chair comment on the recruitment process that led to his appointment to the board. Was a recruitment firm involved, did the full board interview Clive and did they interview any other candidates? Did Clive know any of our directors before engaging with the recruitment process?
6. As the new chair, will Philippe commit to seriously examining these 3 governance and transparency reforms:
1. Voluntarily moving to annual elections of directors like BHP and Treasury Wine Estates do.
2. Disclosing the outcome of voting by shares and shareholders, a move the ASX itself embraced this week.
3. Publishing a full transcript of the AGM debate along with copy of the webcast, so that shareholders who missed the debate can catch up on what happened?
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