Our approach to proxy voting is an important lever we use to support the long-term investability of the public companies in our portfolio by ensuring their boards are providing effective oversight and management teams are pursuing strategies focused on long-term value creation while respecting minority shareholders rights. This is consistent with our mandate to maximize investment returns without undue risk of loss, and our belief that good corporate governance enhances long-term shareholder value.

One of the most effective ways to fulfil our stewardship responsibilities as a shareholder and convey our views to boards of directors and management of public companies, is to vote our proxies at annual and special meetings of shareholders. As investors, we expect boards to consider material business risks and opportunities, including sustainability matters, when setting and implementing strategy. Where we believe this is not being adequately done, we retain and, where appropriate, exercise the right to withhold support for directors through our proxy voting rights.

We vote our proxies in accordance with our publicly available Proxy Voting Principles and Guidelines (PVPGs). Our PVPGs, which are reviewed annually, have two purposes:

1. to give the directors and officers of companies in which we own shares, guidance on how CPP Investments is likely to vote on matters put to the shareholders; and
2. to communicate our views on other important matters that boards will deal with in the normal course of business.

Our PVPGs are intended to be applied globally, taking into account local laws and prevailing governance practices. They are guidelines, not rigid rules, and we will respond to specific matters on a company-by-company basis.