Nationwide Building Society is under pressure to drop Quick Vote
Navendu Mishra MP has written to the Chancellor and to the Chairman of Nationwide to raise concerns about the Quick Vote
Navendu Mishra MP has written to the Chancellor and to the chairman of Nationwide to express concern about the use of the Quick Vote in the mutual’s AGM, which could ‘reduce scrutiny and advantage incumbents’.
On 24 May 2026 the Guardian reported that Mishra expressed his concerns to Kevin Parry, chairman of the Nationwide.
“Their growth is exponential, which is fantastic”, Mishra said, as Nationwide confirmed it was holding £382bn worth of assets after its £2.9bn takeover of Virgin Money. “But obviously, we need to make sure that if Nationwide are always going on and on about how they are mutually owned … then we need to see that democracy,” Mishra added.
The letter was sent weeks before Nationwide’s own annual general meeting (AGM), which will feature its first member-nominated candidate up for boardroom election this century. Mishra said that despite being member-owned, direct representation was still uncommon across the sector.
“There is a wider question as to whether building societies should allocate seats on boards to member-nominated directors in order to strengthen direct member representation,” the MP’s letter said. “Where members are the owners, it is reasonable to ask why direct member voice in the boardroom remains the exception rather than the norm.”
Mishra, who is a Nationwide member, also pushed Parry on the use of “quick vote” options, which critics say nudges members to simply back all board recommendations with one click at annual general meetings (AGMs). He said that while it was “convenient” – admitting to having opted for quick vote use as a Nationwide member in the past – there were concerns it could “reduce scrutiny and advantage incumbents”.
“That’s not allowed for trade unions, which are member-led organisations. So I don’t see why that should be allowed for building societies,” he said. James Sherwin-Smith – a Nationwide member up for board election – has formally asked Nationwide to suspend its use of quick vote at the upcoming AGM. The Nationwide chief executive, Debbie Crosbie, said during a media call on Thursday that the board “haven’t made a final decision on that yet.”
The letter also took aim at the growing adoption of online-only AGMs – which may exclude members who struggle to use the internet and has raised concern about question-filtering – as well as refusing to hold binding member votes on executive pay.
Nils Pratley wrote in the Guardian on 27 April that the board of the Nationwide would be wrong to use the Quick Vote to deny the members a fair say.
Another contentious aspect of voting at Nationwide is its use of a “quick vote” electronic system that allows members to tick a single box in favour of all the board’s recommendations. The claimed justification is greater engagement and a higher turnout. But the potential for such a set-up to squash an outsider’s election chances is obvious: nobody has to use the quick system, but in practice the board starts with a chunk of the votes in its back pocket.
In the circumstances, it would be the best way to keep things simple and suspend the “quick vote” system for this year’s meeting. If the board wants to oppose Sherwin-Smith, which it is perfectly entitled to do, it should make its case openly for why it considers him unsuitable or not needed.
Whatever its recommendation, the board has reasons to be confident of prevailing in the end. Nationwide is a high-performing organisation that scores well, year after year, in surveys of customer satisfaction. It should not need to use a loaded voting system.