Following responses to a consultation on executive pay by the Government, Business Secretary Vince Cable has given a speech to the House of Commons outlining new proposals for executive pay.

Background

In September 2011, the Department for Business Innovation & Skills (“BIS”) issued a consultation paper on executive pay for quoted companies. The paper’s premise was that whilst executive remuneration is an important part of promoting growth (as long as it is well structured and provides rewards for executives that contribute to long term success), in the past decade the link between remuneration and performance has not been clear. The paper put forward various measures to strengthen the link between pay and performance with the purpose of stimulating debate and gathering evidence. BIS sought responses in particular on the subjects of remuneration reports, the role of shareholders, the structure of remuneration and remuneration committee composition...