Oil shareholders reject excessive pay rise

Almost
a quarter of Shell’s shareholders  voted
against the company’s remuneration policy yesterday.

The
vote is seen as one of the UK’s most significant revolts against excess
boardroom pay.

Investors
representing 22.8 per cent of shares protested against Shell’s decision to
award its chairman, Phil Watts, a 55 per cent pay rise last year, despite a 23
per cent slump in profits and share price.

Shell
remuneration committee spokesman, Peter Job, claimed the company’s policy was
"very conservative", and would remain so. He claimed Watts was paid
far less than his counterparts in the other four oil majors.

By Quentin Reade