1. —(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Friendly Societies (Proxy Voting) Regulations 1993 and shall come into force on 1 November 1993.

(2) In these Regulations:

“society” means a friendly society registered under the Friendly Societies Act 1974( 2 ) or incorporated under the Friendly Societies Act 1992;

“resolution” means a resolution which, if passed as mentioned in paragraph 7(2) of Schedule 12 to the Friendly Societies Act 1992, would be a special resolution.

2. The procedure adopted by a society for proxy voting on a resolution must comply with the following requirements:

(a) in every notice calling a meeting of a society at which a resolution is to be moved there must be a statement that:

(i) a member entitled to attend and vote may appoint a proxy to attend and vote at the meeting instead of him; and

(ii) the member may direct the proxy how to vote at the meeting;

(b) the instrument appointing a proxy (who need not be a member of the society and shall not, in the case of a collecting society, be a collector or superintendent thereof) must be signed by the appointer or his agent authorised in writing;

(c) the instrument appointing a proxy or any other document necessary to show the validity of, or otherwise relating to, the appointment of a proxy must be received at the registered office of the society, or at such other place within the United Kingdom as is specified for that purpose in the notice convening the meeting, not less than 48 hours before the time for holding the meeting, or adjourned meeting, at which the person named in the instrument proposes to vote;

(d) there must be no requirement that the instrument appointing a proxy, or any other document necessary to show the validity of, or otherwise relating to, the appointment of a proxy must be received more than seven days before a meeting or adjourned meeting in order that the appointment may be effective at the meeting or adjourned meeting, at which the person named in the instrument proposes to vote;

(e) an instrument appoint a proxy must be in the form, or a form as similar thereto as circumstances admit, set out in the Schedule to these Regulations;

(f) the society may add to any instrument appointing a proxy issued by it in the form required by paragraph (e) above any explanatory notes it may think fit to assist an appointer;

(g) where the rules of a society permit a proxy to speak at a meeting the instrument appointing a proxy may confer authority on the proxy to speak at the meeting; and

(h) a vote given in accordance with the terms of an instrument appointing a proxy is valid notwithstanding:

(i) the previous death or insanity of the appointer or revocation of the proxy or of the authority under which the proxy was executed, provided that no intimation in writing of such death, insanity or revocation has been received by the society at its registered office before the commencement of the meeting or adjourned meeting at which the proxy votes; or

(ii) that since the last day specified for the receipt of instruments appointing a proxy, the appointer has ceased to be entitled to attend and vote at the meeting.

Regulation 2

SCHEDULE

Proxy Voting Form