The bumper reward that Chris O’Shea, chief executive of owner Centrica, raked in included a £7.3million bonus bonana – it came after he earlier this he ‘can’t justify’ what he got paid
The fat cat boss of British Gas saw his pay packet rocket to £8.2million last year as customers battled with sky-high energy bills.
The bumper reward that Chris O’Shea, chief executive of owner Centrica, raked in included a £7.3million bonus bonanza. It came after Mr O’Shea, 50, said earlier this year that he “can’t justify” what he got paid – and that was referring to the £4.5million he got in 2022. Last year’s surge in his pay and perks package came as profits at British Gas jumped. Yet many of its customers faced the choice between heating and eating because of punishing energy bills.
Centrica’s annual report showed Mr O’Shea also got an £810,000 a year salary. It will increase by 4.9% to £855,000 a year from next Monday. The package also included a £1.4mllion annual bonus. Mr O’Shea had previously waived the annual payout in light of difficulties faced by customers. The biggest chunk of last year’s package was £5.9million from a long-term bonus scheme. Centrica admitted £3.9m of that was purely due to a rise in Centrica’s share price.
Carol Arrowsmith, chair of Centrica’s boardroom pay setting remuneration committee said: “We need to ensure Centrica is set up for success in the long-term and that means attracting and retaining high performing executives who can lead this large and complex business.
“Our CEO’s pay is based on the terms he was appointed on, the structure of the package was approved by our shareholders, and it is consistent with similar companies. Centrica’s performance and share price growth are the most significant factors that determine our CEO’s remuneration.”
Simon Francis, coordinator of the End Fuel Poverty Coalition commented: “The contrast between the luxury lifestyles of energy firm bosses and pensioners spending the latest cold snap in cold damp homes couldn’t be starker. To put this in context, the pay packet of one man could cover the energy bills of every single person in Lincoln for a month and leave cash left over.”
