Shareholders reject ‘fat cat’ pay-off

The
board of directors at Britain’s third-largest company has suffered a landmark
defeat by shareholders over the salary package of its chief executive.

The
‘fat cat’ pay debacle took a dramatic twist as shareholders of drugs firm
GlaxoSmithKline staged a revolt over executive pay.

Shareholders
voted against amendments to the contract of chief executive Jean-Pierre
Garnier, which could have seen him walk away with £22m if he was dismissed.

The
company announced that 50.72 per cent of shareholders rejected the proposals
while 49.28 per cent backed them.

The
move marks the country’s first major shareholder rejection of a remuneration
report since the Companies Act gave shareholders the right to register their
opposition to excessive executive reward packages.

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By Ross Wigham