NEARLY one-third of investors in Johnston Press have voted against the newspaper publisher’s revamped remuneration policy, writes Scott Wright.
At the company’s annual meeting in London yesterday, 32 per cent of shareholders signalled their opposition to the policy, as outlined in its 2016 annual report and accounts. The same percentage of investors voted against a resolution authorising the board to grant PSP (performance share plan) awards without performance conditions.
The vote on remuneration at Johnston came just days after the company scaled back plans to hike annual bonuses for senior executives. Edinburgh-based Johnston, which publishes The Scotsman and Yorkshire Post, said that after consulting shareholders the maximum annual bonus for executives would be reduced to “normal policy levels”. That means the maximum bonus potential for chief executive Ashley Highfield, who was last year paid a total of £556,000, will be 120 per cent of annual salary, instead of the proposed 180 per cent.
Mr Highfield was re-elected as a director of the company at the annual meeting yesterday, which saw all of the resolutions tabled by the board carried.
Johnston had reported to the City on Friday that total revenues were up 0.2 per cent in the 17 weeks to April 30, with the company underlining the contribution made by the i newspaper which it acquired last year. Excluding the i, revenues were down 12 per cent at the company, which noted that, while circulation volumes were improving for key daily newspapers, conditions remain tough in the industry.
Shares in Johnston Press closed down 0.12p, or 0.78 per cent, at 15.88p.
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