(Only) A Fifth Vote Against Sorrell's Pay

Around 20% of WPP's investors refused to endorse CEO Sir Martin Sorrell's £43m pay package at this afternoon's Annual General Meeting - quite a lot, 'though quite a lot fewer than in some previous years.

Last year, Sorrell received a 44% increase in pay, making him the highest-paid FTSE 100 CEO, with a pay package more than twice the size of the second highest earner. Today's revolt was considerably smaller than that in 2012 when 59.5% of WPP shareholders voted against a proposed 60% increase, even 'though the package was then much smaller at £17.5m; and the vote was also more decisive than last year's, when almost 30% voted against the company pay plan. At today's AGM, while 77% of WPP's investors did back Sorrell's remuneration package, 19.4% of shareholders voted against it, and 2.7% abstained.

Shareholder advisory firm Pirc has described Sorrell's pay as 'excessive'. Ashley Hamilton Claxton, Corporate Governance Manager at Royal London Asset Management, told The Guardian newspaper: 'There is no doubt that Martin Sorrell is a successful chief executive who has created value for shareholders, but sometimes investors need to ask themselves 'when is enough, enough?'. In our view, £43m is more than enough'.

Web site: www.wpp.com .

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas, 2024- by Nick Thomas, unless otherwise stated.

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