Company Law Reform Bill [HL]

moved Amendment No. 148:"Page 68, line 7, at end insert ““or require that the meeting be adjourned to a date not earlier than 14 days after his representations have been circulated””" The noble Lord said: Amendment No. 148 will possibly be the last amendment that we deal with tonight. It is an important amendment. As a director of a company, I had the experience of colleagues on the board deciding that it was appropriate for a director to be removed for reasons that were given. I was very dissatisfied with the procedure open to that director to make representations. That was not only because his representations were difficult to read, but also because of the seeming injustice that was being done to him. Therefore, this clause makes provision for a director to be removed by a general meeting, but also gives him the right to have representations circulated. In public interest and mutual interest companies, a group of members and/or directors may decide for their own purposes to remove a particular director. That director may have no access to the share register and no means of explaining his position to the other shareholders. The only means he may have of alerting the other members to the difficulties is to have his representations circulated. If the representations are not circulated, the other shareholders may not be aware of the issues and therefore may not attend a general meeting. It is submitted that, at least in such companies, the director should have the right to prevent a vote being taken at a meeting and to have the meeting adjourned until such time as his submissions have been circulated to the membership, which is not earlier than 14 days as provided in the amendment. I beg to move.