Government refusal to extend pay gap reporting rules to Big Four branded ‘disappointing’ January 22, 2019 The government has been accused of letting the Big Four audit firms “evade reporting on their pay ratios” by excluding firms with their business model from new legislation. The government’s small business minister refused to say whether new rules on executive pay transparency would be extended to partnerships during a grilling by MPs today. Members [...]
One in two FTSE 250 bosses has taken a pay cut since 2017 January 22, 2019 Chief executive pay has dropped at nearly half the UK’s top firms since 2017 but British bosses are still earning more than their European peers, according to a new report. Pay for FTSE 250 bosses fell as 48 per cent of firms listed in the index cut remuneration levels by 10 per cent on average. [...]
CYBG could face shareholder unrest over executive pay following Virgin Money deal January 20, 2019 Virgin Money’s new owner CYBG could face an investor backlash after a respected shareholder advisory group slammed its executive pay plans which it said are “not supported by compelling rationale”. The report by advisory group ISS said that following the acquisition of Virgin Money for £1.7bn last year, the company plans to nearly double variable [...]
Berkeley Group chairman Tony Pidgley on Brexit, buildings and bonus backlashes January 16, 2019 Tony Pidgley is a staunch defender of his trade, as you would expect Britain’s best-known housebuilder to be. So it comes as something of a surprise when, asked about the huge row that hit his sector last year when fellow housing boss Jeff Fairburn took a £75m bonus, he does not come down on Fairburn’s [...]
Do not succumb to the ‘Fat Cat Friday’ outrage January 3, 2019 As if Greggs’ vegan sausage rolls hadn’t prompted enough misplaced shock and outrage for the start of a new year, you can expect more of the same this morning when campaigners declare it to be “Fat Cat Friday”. The High Pay Centre, which opposes current levels of executive remuneration, calculates that by this afternoon a [...]
BT to shake up executive pay amid shareholder revolt over boss’s bonus December 18, 2018 BT today said it will rethink its executive pay strategy after shareholders fought back at the outgoing chief executive’s £2.3m pay packet. The embattled telecoms group said it was “disappointed” at the results of a vote on its annual remuneration report, which saw 34 per cent of shareholders vote against the proposed pay. Much of [...]
Nissan boss tells Renault to heed its warnings over Ghosn misconduct charges December 17, 2018 Nissan’s chief executive today called on Renault board members to listen to its reasons for sacking former chairman Carlos Ghosn. Renault said last week it would keep Carlos Ghosn, who is in detention in Tokyo on charges of financial misconduct, as its chairman and chief executive. But Nissan boss Hiroto Saikawa said the Renault board [...]
Voting with your wallet is the ultimate consumer power December 4, 2018 The Labour party leadership believes that income inequality is far too high. As socialists, they think of income as centrally distributed, like slices of cake at a birthday party. Top company executives have seen sharp increases in pay in recent decades, so in Labour’s view, that means less sponge and icing for workers. The cutter [...]
Heed Hammond’s warning: We must not be prisoners of change December 3, 2018 Britain has become a single issue nation. So all-consuming have the ins and outs of Brexit become that the national debate seems incapable of concentrating on anything else. Which was why it was so surprising when Philip Hammond spoke to a small business audience last week and didn’t drop the B-word once. In so doing, [...]
Executive pay is undermining the public’s faith in capitalism November 26, 2018 Question: what connects the leader of a York-based housebuilder with a car executive in Tokyo? Answer: both have recently been embroiled in scandals over top pay. Carlos Ghosn, chairman of Nissan, is under criminal investigation in Japan for under-reporting his remuneration to the Tokyo Stock Exchange and misusing company assets. Nissan removed him from post [...]