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M&S defends its executive pay as UK sales surge in first quarter

Thu, 2010-07-08

The Independent

Sir Stuart Rose, the chairman of Marks & Spencer, boasted yesterday that its resolution on executive pay would be passed by investors at its annual meeting next week, after the retailer reported that clothing sales had soared ahead of expectations.

M&S could face a protest from shareholders in London next Wednesday after Pirc, the corporate governance body, urged them to vote against its remuneration report and its "highly excessive" executive pay. In particular, Pirc highlighted the potential for the M&S to grant a variable remuneration of 650 per cent of base salary.

It also cited the potential £14.8m that Marc Bolland, who became the chief executive of M&S in May, could earn in his first year, although half of this relates to compensation for bonuses accrued at Morrisons. However, Sir Stuart said: "I am very confident that all the resolutions will be passed and we can move on to a new place."

He also launched a vigorous defence of Mr Bolland's pay, saying: "If you pay peanuts, you get monkeys".