To hear the US Chamber of Commerce tell it, the Securities and Exchange Commission must act this week to prevent activist investors clogging up annual shareholder proxy votes with proposals about directors and even – gasp – their own candidates for the board. The business group argues that access to the proxy would give unions, hedge funds and environmental groups too much power. The ramifications are potentially so dire that companies might move abroad to avoid them, one lobbyist told Congress.

Small problem: all 40 of the largest markets outside the US give investors in public companies a mechanism for nominating and removing directors, according to the International Corporate Governance Network. The UK’s rules date back to the 19th century but are rarely invoked. Since 2001, three UK companies have elected shareholder nominees to their board.