Crest Nicholson defends CEO Stephen Stone’s new role as some shareholders rebel

Housebuilder Crest Nicholson defended its CEO’s new role as a chunk of shareholders voted against the proposal at its AGM.

The vote passed a motion to re-elect Stephen Stone in a new role as executive chairman for one year, followed by two years as a non-executive director.

But almost 10 per cent of shareholder withheld their votes on the decision, while 20 per cent of those who did vote opposed the move.

It follows a call by Institutional Shareholder Services for investors to oppose Stone’s election as executive chair due to concerns that it could break corporate governance rules.

Today the company said it had previously consulted with shareholders, and recognised that the proposal was “unlikely to be universally accepted”. It said that it has appointed a deputy chairman and an additional non-executive director in order to uphold the requirements of the Corporate Governance Code.

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“We are disappointed that over 20 per cent of shareholders were not supportive, and over 9 per cent withheld their votes given our extensive engagement and the additional measures we have put in place,” said the group.

“However, the board is confident that there will be the necessary separation between the chairman and CEO and, supported by the additional safeguards, will be a healthy feature for the company for the relatively short period of the appointment.”

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