Spanish and Dutch lag Europe in corporate governance study

Britain has Europe's best corporate governance with Germany, Spain and the Netherlands among the worst, although the continental standards as a whole are improving, according to Brussels research firm Deminor.
The 2003 ratings, released on Monday, were based on 300 indicators ranging from shareholder rights to the proportion of independent directors, disclosure of remuneration and rules for capital increases.
The survey of the companies in the FTSE Eurotop 300 index pointed to an improvement in governance, driven by financial scandals on both sides of the Atlantic such as the Enron in the United States, Ahold in the Netherlands and Parmalat in Italy.
"The UK is by far the best country (in Europe) in terms of shareholders rights. They also have very limited authorised capital," Kristof Hotiu, one of the authors, told Reuters. "Overall, one could say that the Netherlands is definitely the worst country.