Against the backdrop of one of the most turbulent seasons of annual meetings in the annals of corporate governance, European Union authorities have been shining a light on the firms that advise fund managers on how to vote their shares – among them ISS, Ivis – part of the Association of British Insurers – Manifest and Pirc.

In March, after some companies complained that the business practices of these advisers represented an apparent conflict of interest- and after pressure from the French financial services regulator - the European Securities and Markets Association consulted on whether it should regulate these firms at an EU level for the first time.