Sir Sell-Off lands £2m in Meggitt sale
THE chairman of Meggitt is on course for a multi-million-pound payday after shareholders backed plans to sell the defence giant to an American rival for £6.3bn.
Sir Nigel Rudd stands to receive £2m after 99.8pc of shareholders supported the takeover by Parker Hannifin yesterday.
It is the latest example of Rudd presiding over the foreign takeover of a company he chairs – leading to his nickname ‘the man who sold Britain’.
The 74-year-old (pictured) also oversaw the sales of Pilkington Glass, Alliance Boots, engineer Invensys and Signature Aviation.
He owns 250,000 shares in Meggitt and has been chairman since 2015. That puts him in line for £2m under Parker’s £8 a share offer.
This is on top of £2.1m that he has earned during his six years at the company.
Meggitt makes parts for several aircraft, including military planes such as the Eurofighter Typhoon and F-35. It has annual revenues of around £1.7bn and employs more than 9,000 staff.
Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng has not ordered an investigation into whether the takeover would harm UK national security.
Parker chairman Tom Williams said: ‘The legally-binding commitments we offered alongside our recommended offer underline our intention to be a responsible steward of Meggitt, and we are engaged with the Government to finalise the commitments.’
Meggitt had a higher offer from US rival Transdigm whose interest later fizzled out.