Ladies and gentlemen, Mesdames et Messieurs, good afternoon. My name is Claude Dussault, and I am the Chair of Intact. On behalf of the directors, I would like to welcome you to the 2022 Annual Meeting of Shareholders of Intact Financial Corporation. [Foreign language] Please note that this meeting will take place in English; however, simultaneous translation is being provided through our French webcast, and we welcome questions in either language. In addition, closed captioning is available by clicking on the CC button on the bottom right of the webcast player located on the right side of your screen.
Should you have any technical support issues during the meeting webcast, please refer to the Frequently Asked Questions page. Before we begin the meeting, I would like to take note that we are once again holding our shareholder meeting virtually to ensure the health and well-being of our shareholders, customers, and colleagues in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. While we regret that we cannot meet in person this year, we have made every effort to reproduce a shareholder meeting experience through virtual means. As chair of the board of directors of the company, I will act as chair of this meeting as per the company's Bylaws, so I call the meeting to order. I would like to draw your attention to the forward-looking statement disclaimer currently displayed on the webcast page. Certain forward-looking statements may be made during the course of this meeting.
Joining me today are Charles Brindamour, the CEO of the company who will deliver his report later in the meeting, and Stéphanie Lee, Group Deputy General Counsel, who will act as secretary of the meeting. My fellow directors, as well as members of the senior management of the company, are joining us remotely for today's meeting. Patty Sigiannis and Daniela Muñoz, representatives of Computershare, will act as scrutineers of the meeting. At this time, I would like to review the procedures for voting and for asking questions during the meeting. If you have already voted by proxy in advance of the meeting and do not wish to change your vote, you do not need to vote again. The following is the procedure for shareholders and proxy holders with us today who have logged in using the username and password provided by Computershare.
If you are a shareholder or proxy holder who has not yet voted, or if you wish to change your existing vote, you may do so by clicking on the voting button, which is the icon in the middle of your screen at the top of the page. Voting is now open and will remain open until all voting matters have been presented. Those attending the meeting as guests are not able to vote. For the purpose of this meeting, I will ask Stéphanie Lee, who is our shareholder, to move all proposals. Following the closing of voting, preliminary voting results will be announced by the secretary for each matter. Final voting results will be published by press release and will be available on the company's website as well as on SEDAR following the meeting.
Shareholders and proxy holders attending the meeting and wishing to ask questions are encouraged to ask their question by clicking on the messaging button in the middle of your screen at the top of the page. Once you have finished typing out your question, please indicate whether it relates to a specific item on the meeting agenda or is of a more general nature, then click the Send icon button at the right side of the text box. Those attending the meeting as guests are not able to ask a question. We will address questions regarding specific agenda items at the time these items are presented. General questions will be addressed following remarks by our CEO. The secretary of the meeting will read the questions received. Questions of a similar nature will be grouped together in a single question.
If your question concerns a client matter, please include your contact information, and a member of our customer service team will get in touch with you following the meeting. Finally, if there are any questions we are not able to answer today, we will reach out to you personally after the meeting to ensure we answer your question. So thank you in advance for your support of these procedures. I have received satisfactory proof that the notice calling this meeting was duly sent to all shareholders of the company under the notice and access regime, the whole in conformity with the bylaws of the company and with the corporate and securities laws of Canada. We have received proxies representing more than 80% of the over 160 million common shares outstanding.
I hereby declare that notice requirements have been met, that the quorum is present, and that this meeting is properly constituted for the transaction of business. I further direct that the secretary maintain the proxies and records of attendance with the official records of this meeting. The meeting is now open. At this time, I would like to remind everyone attending the meeting that the minutes of last year's annual and special meeting of shareholders, along with the meeting agenda and other documents, including the management proxy circular and annual financial statements, are available by clicking the Documents icon in the middle of your screen at the top of the page, as well as under the Investors tab of the company's website. The first order of business is the receipt of the company's financial statements for the year 2021.
Copies of these financial statements were made available to shareholders who requested them along with the annual meeting documentation. Copies are also available on SEDAR, on our website, and may be obtained from the secretary's office or the investors' relations department of the company. Can the secretary confirm whether any questions have been received with respect to this matter?
I confirm that no questions have been received with respect to this matter.
Thank you. I confirm that the consolidated financial statements of Intact Financial Corporation for the tax year ended December 31, 2021, and the auditor's report related to these financial statements have been hereby received by this meeting. The next item of the meeting is the appointment of the auditor. Management, the audit committee, and the board of directors of the company have recommended the appointment of Ernst & Young as the company's auditor for the 2022 fiscal year and until the next annual meeting. Can the secretary confirm whether there are any questions that we have received with respect to this matter?
I confirm we have not received any questions with respect to this matter.
Thank you. May I have a proposal in this regard?
My name is Stéphanie Lee, and I am a shareholder of the company. I would like to move that Ernst & Young LLP be appointed as auditor of the company for the year 2022 and until the next annual meeting.
Thank you. I would like to remind all shareholders and proxy holders in attendance that voting is currently open and will remain open until the last voting matter has been presented. We will now proceed with the election of the directors of the company. 12 directors are nominated for election at this meeting. Except for Ms. Stephani Kingsmill, who is being proposed to fill the vacancy left by the retirement of Tim Penner and the recent appointment of Emmanuel Clarke, all directors proposed by management of the company were elected by the shareholders at the last year's annual meeting. Please also note that in accordance with the company's advance notice bylaw adopted by shareholders last year, it has been confirmed that no other director nominations were received by the company. Can the secretary confirm whether any questions have been received with respect to the election of the directors?
We have not received any questions with respect to this matter.
Thank you. May I have a proposal in this regard?
My name is Stéphanie Lee, and I am a shareholder of the company, and I hereby propose the following persons as directors of the board of directors of Intact Financial Corporation as of this meeting and to remain in that function until the next annual meeting: Charles Brindamour, Emmanuel Clarke, Janet De Silva, Stephani Kingsmill, Jane Kinney, Robert Leary, Sylvie Paquette, Stuart Russell, Indira Samarasekera, Frederick Singer, Carolyn Wilkins, and William Young.
Thank you. Voting is currently open if you wish to do so, and will remain open until the last voting matter has been presented. The next item on the agenda is the advisory resolution relating to the company's approach to executive compensation. The board of directors believe that shareholders should have the opportunity to fully understand the objectives, philosophy, and principles that the board of directors has used in and integrated to make executive compensation decisions. It is the board of directors' intention that this shareholder advisory vote will form an important part of the ongoing process of engagement between shareholders and the board of directors on compensation. The board of directors has recommended that shareholders approve the non-binding advisory resolution. Can the secretary confirm whether any questions have been received with respect to this matter?
No questions on this matter.
Thank you. May I have a proposal in this regard?
My name is Stéphanie Lee, and I am a shareholder. I move that the following resolution be approved: be it resolved on a non-binding and advisory basis, and not to diminish the role and responsibilities of the board of directors, that the shareholders accept the approach to executive compensation disclosed in the company's management proxy circular made available in advance of the 2022 annual meeting of shareholders.
Thank you. Voting remains open if you wish to vote on any of the matters presented, and will close following the presentation of the next matter. Thank you. We will be closing voting now. I invite those shareholders and proxy holders who have not yet cast their vote but wish to do so to complete voting now. Voting has now closed. I will now ask the secretary to report the preliminary voting results, please.
Thank you. I received the preliminary scrutineer report. The final results will be filed on SEDAR and made available on the company's website as well as via press release following this meeting. The following are the preliminary results: Ernst & Young has been appointed as auditor of the company for the year 2022 and until the next annual meeting by at least 88% of the votes cast. All directors nominated for election have been duly elected with at least 97% of votes cast and will hold office until the next annual meeting of shareholders or until their successors are elected or appointed. The advisory resolution to accept the approach to executive compensation was approved by at least 97% of votes cast.
Thank you. We have now completed the official business of the meeting and will now hear reports from myself and the CEO. This will be followed by a question and answer period. As a reminder, if you are a shareholder or proxy holder and wish to ask a question, you can submit it by clicking the messaging icon on the middle of your screen at the top of the page. As the world navigates uncertain times, Intact continues to successfully adapt to changing circumstances. Despite a tough environment over the last two years, Intact is thriving. Its strong financial position and clear purpose and values have underpinned the company's ability to evolve and grow. Looking back, 2021 was an outstanding year for Intact, marked by the completion of the RSA acquisition.
We have welcomed many new colleagues across Canada, the U.K., Ireland, and Europe, and we are expanding our leadership position in Canada, strengthening our position now in the U.K. and Ireland, and establishing a truly global specialty solutions platform. Momentum across the business is strong. Our solid results stem from our robust strategy and are measured against our strategic objectives that aim to make customers our advocates, build and retain a talented, engaged, and diverse team, and be recognized as respected leaders and industry experts. We ended 2021 and completed the first quarter of 2022 in a position of strength. Looking ahead, Intact has concrete action plans to advance its 10-year strategic roadmap. The teams are continuing to progress on integrating and transitioning the RSA business, and we are on track.
Strong governance is also a key element of our success and something the board spends a great deal of time focusing on. Last year, Intact was once again recognized as one of Canada's most respected companies, attaining the top position in the Globe and Mail Board Games rankings for a second year in a row. A critical aspect of our commitment towards excellent governance is regular communications among shareholders, the board, and management. Climate change and the risk associated with it have also been a priority for the board, and we supported management charting of a low-carbon net-zero path for the company over the last year. In 2022, we will continue to support the leadership team as they start implementing the five-part climate strategy.
This will be paramount in the years ahead for Intact in fulfilling their purpose of helping and building resiliency among customers, brokers, and employees. I want to thank the board of directors for their leadership and dedication, which have helped Intact reach the strong position it is in today. Thank you for your contribution over the past year and valuable counsel in defining the company's strategy and future. You provided guidance during the recent acquisition, ensured key ESG factors continue to be incorporated into risk management processes, and you have monitored and provided risk oversight during the current difficult external environment. Tim Penner, who is retiring after 12 years of service on the board, gave us the benefit of his experience and guidance on, among others, our human resource and compensation committee as well as our conduct review and corporate governance committee.
Tim, your contribution over the past 12 years is extremely valued by your fellow directors. Thank you so much. I am also pleased to welcome Stephani Kingsmill to our board. One of Intact's strategic objectives is to reflect the communities it serves, and we establish goals to achieve greater diversity of our board. With Stephani's election, our board will have an equal number of men and women directors. After 14 years as chair of the board and 8 years before that as a CEO of Intact, the time has come for me to retire. I am thrilled to hand the reins to Bill Young, an exceptional director who has significant experience leading the board of major Canadian public companies. I know Intact will continue to prosper under his guidance.
In closing, I want to thank Charles Brindamour and his executive team, who have done an extraordinary job growing Intact into the strong global company it is today. Thanks also to employees, customers, brokers, and shareholders for their continued trust and support. Intact's strengths, resilience, and commitment to excellence was again evident in 2021, and I look forward to seeing the company continue to outperform for many years to come. Thank you. I will now invite Charles Brindamour to deliver his remarks. Please, Charles.
Thanks, Claude. Congratulations on your retirement. Good afternoon, fellow shareholders. So I'm happy to share with you today our progress as a firm, a brief overview of the environment in which we operate, and our game plan to win in the coming years. [Foreign language].
The challenges, including the lasting socioeconomic impacts of the pandemic, the serious impacts of the war in Ukraine, the increasing frequency and severity of extreme weather, and severe inflation resulting in both higher interest rates and substantial cost of living increases. So the why, our reason for being, continues to matter more. And as I said to you last year, this period has helped us redefine resilience.
Moving at lightning speed and building massive capabilities at Intact. With Tryg, we completed the CAD 12.3 billion acquisition of RSA last June. Our team grew by 9,000 people to 26,000 people, and we onboarded people faster than in any previous acquisitions. We were named a best employer in Canada for the sixth consecutive year and in the U.S. for the third time. We continued to support people as they faced the impacts of the pandemic, providing CAD 635 million in COVID-19 relief to more than 1.2 million customers since 2020. Despite the pandemic and the relief provided, we grew our operations revenue by close to 45% in 2021 and established a presence in the U.K. and Europe. We bolstered our Canadian leadership by close to 30% and expanded our specialty lines business by also more than 30%, in addition to gaining global capabilities.
While we grew, we also made strides in optimizing our footprint. Last week, we completed the sale of Codan Denmark for close to four times book value, and in late March, we announced the sale of the Middle East operation. We made major technology investments in Canada and the U.S. to improve both the broker and the customer experience with more investment plans across the platform, including the U.K., this year. In a year dominated by floods, wildfire, wind, and hail, our teams worked quickly to get customers back on track, and we launched our new climate strategy, as Claude mentioned, this April, building up our leadership and adaptation. All the while, increasing our net operating income per share by well over 30%, close to 20% over five years, and outperforming our competitors by close to 750 basis points of ROE.
These accomplishments in a very turbulent time give us optimism for the future. That optimism is anchored in three things. First, our prudent and disciplined approach. We entered this period in a position of financial strength, backed by clear objectives and a 10-year strategic roadmap. We've continued to outperform in 2021 with solid results in the first quarter of 2022, as reported last night. And that's why we've been able to be there for customers, brokers, and employees throughout the last two years. Second, our team is energized by big problems. When challenges arise, we step up and focus on finding the intersection between helping and winning. Our leaders have the capacity to build energy around adversity and to find the big opportunities. That is our outperformance mindset, and this is what has led us to complete the RSA acquisition, our largest to date, in the middle of a pandemic.
That mindset also led to the recent launch of our enhanced climate strategy. And third, underpinning all this is our values. We make no compromise on these as they're more important than results. Living these values at scale is our biggest strength. And while they drive customer experience and employee engagement, they are, in my mind, no doubt, a key competitive advantage. Our people are living our values of integrity, respect, customer-driven excellence, and generosity day in and day out. While we have a strong financial foundation, an outperformance mindset, and a values-driven approach, our game plan, our strategy, is one that is outside in. In other words, we focus on where the world is going to figure out where our strengths as a firm will make us win. And so let's explore briefly the landscape in which we'll operate in both the near and the mid term.
In the near term, we expect continued firm-to-hard market conditions in the insurance marketplaces. This perspective is a function of poor pre-pandemic underwriting performance for the industry, high inflation, acceleration of natural disasters, and while interest rates are rising, still a relatively low-rate environment. Over the medium term, we're watching how big trends or deep trends continue to evolve. I'm going to highlight just a few where we see the biggest changes, namely consumers, technology, the environment, and talent. Consumer expectations are shifting rapidly. In practical terms, we expect consumers will see erosion in net purchasing power beyond 2023 in both Canada, the U.S., and the U.K. Their expectations in terms of ease of interaction, transparency, and value for money will continue to increase. Second, the role of software and technology advancements are accelerating, and we're marching in a new era with Web 3.0 emerging.
Beyond shifting consumer expectations, this will continue to drive an explosion in data sets and democratization of data access, storage, and treatment. Weather patterns have also changed dramatically in the past 30 years, with natural disasters increasing by a factor of four. The transition to net zero is clearly at an inflection point, and we expect substantial changes at both the consumer and the industrial level. We need to double down on adaptation but position ourselves to win in the transition. And finally, people, over the medium term, we're looking at the perfect storm of a demographic time bomb compounded by a very tight labor market to start with. The impact of COVID on the work environment and the emerging technology are all contributing to changes in what we expect from our people and, more importantly, what they expect from us.
Increasingly, people are looking for their employers to step up to help solve society's problem. So we see these trends as opportunities to leverage our strengths to help society and deliver strong results in 2022 and over the medium term. So let me spend a bit of time on how we define success when we think about the mid term. [Foreign language].
Of course, it all starts with our customers. We want three out of four customers to be our advocates, meaning they are willing to recommend us to friends and family. We also recognize that our brokers are essential partners in the customer journey. That is why we want to have four out of five brokers value our specialized expertise. Our second objective is to ensure our people are engaged because employees are key to our success in delivering on our customer ambition. We aim to be among the best employers in the markets where we operate. We have also been investing in a diverse and inclusive workforce for years. We measure our success on this front in ensuring that our employees and leaders are representative of the communities we serve. Our third objective is to ensure that we are one of the most respected companies.
We think respect calls for outperformance. And so our financial measures of success include exceeding industry ROE by five points every year and growing NOIPS by 10% yearly over time. But respect goes beyond outperformance. We want to be recognized by at least three out of four stakeholders as leaders in building resilient communities. Finally, we want to help society transition to Net Zero by 2050. And we aim to achieve Net Zero overall by 2050 and half our corporate operations emissions by 2030.
Let me now cover the five big areas of focus in 2022 to achieve these objectives and position Intact Financial Corporation to win in the long term. First, the RSA transition and integration remains a top priority across our markets in 2022. Louis Gagnon and his team are doing a brilliant job in Canada. The integration is on track, and we continue to progress very quickly. On the specialty lines front, the acquisition has transformed our capabilities. We can now reach 70% of the global specialty market through Canada, the U.S., the U.K., and Europe. We have all the ingredients to build a top-notch global specialty lines platform, and that is what Mike Miller and his team will be focusing on in the coming months. We're working towards transitioning the U.K. and Ireland business to sustainable outperformance. We're already looking at strengthening pricing sophistication with our data lab team.
We'll also capitalize on opportunities in the mid-market and regions and invest in technology to increase the business's agility. We have a talented team in the UK, and I, with Ken Norgrove at the helm, will continue to build on that strength. Our second area of focus is centered around delivering for our customers through continued investments in our brands, distribution, technology, and digital capabilities. In Canada, our distribution footprint is second to none. We want to have an offer that fits every customer's needs. That strategy has allowed us to be the choice of one in four Canadians and one in four small and medium-sized businesses. Transforming our competitive advantage is key to our ability to outsmart our competitors. That is our third area of focus. Investing in AI claims and supply chain management is mission-critical and a big differentiator for Intact.
We continue to rapidly develop and deploy AI applications throughout our business with over 200 models in production to improve pricing and risk selection capabilities. We're looking to machine learning models to help us improve the customer experience in both claims and in sales. Our On Side Restoration business is an important area of growth when it comes to supply chain. As extreme weather continues to intensify, On Side will play a big role in getting customers back on track and in improving customer satisfaction. Our fourth priority is investing in our people. Our talent pool has grown significantly over the last year. Our team is stronger than ever. With the challenging labor market, we're focused on retention, recruitment, and easing the transition to a flexible hybrid work environment.
Our promise to employees is to provide them with the opportunity to shape the future, to win as a team, and to grow with us. We'll continue to invest in those key pillars and improve the employee experience across our markets. Finally, we want to accelerate the deployment of our recently announced five-part climate strategy across the globe. We have some big ideas and about 20 key priorities in the near term to get this strategy off the ground this year. That leads me to the last part of my remarks. We've been on the front lines of climate change for more than a decade, helping our customers recover from the devastating impacts of extreme weather while actively managing the risks in our business.
As the world is at an important inflection point in its transition to net zero, our strategy is anchored in the belief that we can move from defense to offense and help society while winning in the marketplace. The climate strategy has five key pillars. First, we want to achieve net zero emissions by 2050, as I've mentioned, in line with the Paris Agreement. We've also set an interim goal to halve emissions from our corporate operations by 2030 across our global footprint. To reach our target, we'll look at reduction strategies such as electrifying our fleet of vehicles, increasing renewable energy use in our offices, and reducing corporate travel. Second, we want to double down on adaptation. We'll build on our accomplishments by investing in natural infrastructure and scaling up restoration services to address the increasing impacts of severe weather.
We've embarked on a CAD 8 million five-year partnership with The Nature Conservancy to conserve and restore more of Canada's threatened wetlands. I'm also thrilled about our collaboration to develop a protocol for wetland-based carbon offsets. We hope that protocol will be a sustainable finance tool for use in Canada, and we think has the potential to be adopted in other markets. We've also increased our investment in the Intact Centre on Climate Adaptation at the University of Waterloo to CAD 10.5 million over 10 years. And we'll ramp up our climate resiliency partnerships in both the U.K. and Ireland and the U.S. With our expertise in adaptation and risk management, we're well positioned to leverage our strengths, scale, and platforms to help customers in their own transition to net zero. We want to help them adopt climate-friendly behaviors.
And so we intend to deploy risk-based incentives in addition to a range of green new products. We also believe we have an opportunity to influence sourcing clean materials in claims and in the supply chain. Our fourth area of focus is to enable the transformation of industries key to the transition. We can play an active role in de-risking existing and new industries that can make a difference in building a sustainable future. That's a big opportunity in both commercial and specialty lines. As a founding signatory of the industry-led Climate Engagement Canada, Intact Investment Management is also engaging with top emitters to reduce their impact. And through Intact Ventures, we'll also accelerate investments in climate tech that will enable the transition to a lower carbon world. And finally, our last commitment is around collaboration. We'll continue to support government and industry in developing impactful climate.
For our customers while outperforming as a business. Yes, the world will continue to experience volatility and adversity. But as we've demonstrated in the past few years, our team thrives in difficult environments. And so we're energized by the challenges ahead.[Foreign language].
In conclusion, I want to take a moment to thank our board and particularly our outgoing chairman, Claude Dussault. Claude has been instrumental in the development of our strategy over the last couple of decades. Beyond strategy, Claude has helped us solidify our commitment to clients and our empathetic approach. He was instrumental in creating outperformance as an anchor for Intact. He was a great ambassador given how much he lived our values. He was also a fierce advocate in promoting gender diversity, culminating with a board that is now composed equally of men and women. I thank you for your leadership and guidance. You will be greatly missed.
I'm very pleased that Bill Young will be our new chairman. I look forward to working closely with Bill and the board to build on Claude's legacy and our track record. Most of all, I thank our employees across our markets for their passion and dedication to delivering service that is second to none to customers and brokers over the last year. They are doing their best while living our values day in and day out. Our values indeed will. Our decisions moving forward and help us outline meaningful ways to make a difference. With this strong foundation, an outstanding team, and an ambitious strategy, I'm confident that we're very well positioned for continued growth and success. Thank you.
Thank you, Charles. We will now address any general questions that have been submitted. As a reminder, shareholders and proxy holders wishing to ask questions are encouraged to pose their questions by clicking the messaging icon in the middle of your screen at the top of the page. The secretary of the meeting will read the questions received. Questions of a similar nature will be grouped together in a single question. If your question concerns a client matter, please include your contact information, and a member of our customer service team will get in touch with you following the meeting. Finally, if there are any questions we are not able to answer today, we will reach out to you personally after the meeting to ensure we answer your question. Can the secretary confirm whether we have received any question at this stage?
We do have a question from a shareholder. How will IFC reach its outperformance objectives while also pursuing the transition to Net Zero emissions, and will you sacrifice financial performance to achieve Net Zero?
Well, thanks for the question. The first point I would make is that if you don't embrace climate transition, you're putting yourself at risk first. Second, our perspective is that the societal changes and the capital movements and the transformation that will take place in the coming years is very significant for society, but as a result, a big opportunity for Intact. And I say that with the perspective that we've been on the front lines for over a decade. We faced what I think was an existential question when it comes to protecting Canadians. About a decade ago, we've transformed our business and really positioned our ability to protect Canadians as our fastest-growing line of business and one of our most profitable lines of business. And so it's with that mindset and can-do attitude that we're looking at the transition.
We're convinced that it'll be a catalyst to our financial performance and, more importantly, be a big source of growth. We're convinced we can do that while helping society, given our reach, with customers as well as with governments.
Thank you, Charles. Have we received other questions, Stephanie?
No further questions, Claude.
Okay. Thank you. So we have now completed our agenda for this meeting. I then declare the meeting terminated. Thank you to all of you for attending.