There is no shortage of discontent with the way listed companies are being managed in the wake of the credit crisis. None of us should be surprised to see an increasing number of activist investors getting stuck in, but a general inertia among shareholders has meant action has been slow. That is finally starting to change.

The latest arrival in the UK is Cevian Capital, a forthright activist investor from Sweden, which has persuaded Lord Paul Myners, a firm believer in shareholder activism, to become its UK chairman and lobby companies, and shareholders, for improvements in governance.