Fat cat list shines light on role of pay adviser

THE majority of firms named on the Government’s list of shame for their excessive boardroom packages are advised by the same executive pay consultancy.

Analysis by The Mail on Sunday reveals that Willis Towers Watson advises seven out of the ten blue-chip companies on Prime Minister Theresa May’s fat cat list – where more than 20 per cent of investors revolted over high pay.

The register was commissioned in an effort to crack down on high pay in the boardroom.

The scandal over the £100 million-plus bonus for Persimmon’s chief executive Jeff Fairburn has put boardroom pay back in the spotlight.

Questions are now being asked about the role pay consultants play in inflating executive salaries.

London-based Willis Towers Watson is one of the most prominent pay consultants. It advises major companies including media giant Sky, fashion house Burberry, supermarket Morrisons, advertising group WPP, publisher Pearson, events business Informa and credit checker Experian. All faced significant investor revolts last year. Three other FTSE100 companies are on the list. Pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca and NMC Health are advised on their executive pay by Deloitte while financial adviser Old Mutual uses PwC.

Stefan Stern, director of the High Pay Centre, is critical of the role that pay consultants play.

‘It’s a classic professional services firm dilemma,’ he said. ‘You want to keep the client so how tough are you going to be?’