Mears shareholders advised to vote against proposed appointments

The board of housing and social care provider Mears Group has advised its shareholders to vote against two proposed appointments put forward by PrimeStone Irish Capital Holdco DAC.

PrimeStone, which holds a 13.5% stake in Mears, is seeking the appointment of two non-executive directors, Andrew Coppel and Ian Lawson.

Coppel’s previous experience includes chairman of Dolphin Capital Investors and CEO of independent financial advisory organisation De Vere Group.

Lawson was previously a board director of construction, services and property company Kier Group where he served 13 years.

Primestone put forward Coppel and Lawson as it believes Mears’ underperformance is predominantly due to a lack of strategic, commercial and financial experience on the board.

Mears’ care revenue fell by 13% in its latest annual results for 2018 to £116.6m from £134.1m the year previous, while total turnover at the group dropped to £869.8m from £900.2m.