2024 was a bad year for shareholder proposals that aimed to tackle environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues. ShareAction (a campaign group for responsible investment) found that only 4 of 279 (1.4%) ESG resolutions, presented at annual general meetings, secured majority support. In 2021, that figure was 21%. This drop was most marked in the US, where right-wing activists and politicians have targeted firms supporting climate and diversity policies (https://www.theguardian.com/business/2025/feb/18/support-for-esg-proposals-at-record-low-driven-by-us-investors-report-shows). David Yelland and Simon Lewis, give an illustration of this phenomenon in their 'When it hits the fan' PR podcast. US hedge fund Elliot Management have bought a 5% stake in British Petroleum (BP). That company is now very vulnerable, as it pledged earlier to reduce its fossil fuel extractions, as well as to invest in renewables. This makes good economic sense but the BP share price has remained lower than those of its fossil fuel rivals. Yelland and Lewis note that, whereas BP has to follow financial rules when making pronouncements, Elliot Management can simply get a 'source' to reveal they're unhappy with BP's basic strategy. It's an unequal PR contest. The podcasters feel that BP's current executives are likely to be ejected. BP's oil extraction activities (in the US) may be hived off as a separate, more active, body. In spite of underpinning many pension funds, BP may even cease to be a British company. As the song goes, 'money doesn't talk, it screams'.
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