B&Q owner Kingfisher suffers shareholder rebellion over executive pay
B&Q owner Kingfisher today suffered a shareholder rebellion over executive pay as investors opposed the chief executive and finance chief’s combined pay packet of more than £3m.
Almost a quarter of shareholder’s that took part in the vote opposed the remuneration report, which will see chief executive Veronique Laury, who is set to step down in September, take home a total of £1.77m.
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Former chief financial officer Karen Witts, who left the firm in March, will receive £1.27m for the 2018/2019 financial year. Laury and Witts will pocket bonuses of £522,000 and £400,800 respectively.
In total 24.19 per cent of shareholder votes opposed the remuneration report at today’s annual general meeting.
The board’s remuneration committee said it will consult further with shareholders on pay and its relationship with “short-term financial performance”.
In a statement today Kingfisher said: “The views of our shareholders are of paramount importance to the remuneration committee, and therefore the committee intends to consult further with shareholders to understand the specific rationale for any votes against our report.
“Our current understanding is that these concerns were mainly focused on our assessment of 2018/19 performance, and the corresponding awards made.”
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It added: “We are therefore keen to listen to our shareholders about how we evolve the operation of the annual awards and their relationship with short-term financial performance over forthcoming months.”
Kingfisher will publish an update on the consultation within the next six months.