The European Union has issued a proposal that would give shareholders greater influence in corporate governance and remove obstacles to cross-border investment. The investor-friendly proposal, according to Bloomberg News, would lift share-blocking rules, which currently prohibit the trading of stock in advance of a shareholder vote and elimination of ID requirements that barred voting either electronically or by proxy.
Another provision in the proposal would require the nearly 8,000 public traded companies in the EU to publicize the date of annual meetings 30 days in advance.