Vodafone to review directors’ pay packages

Mobile phone giant Vodafone today pledged to review directors’ pay packages after shareholder anger over the amount of money paid to chief executive Sir Chris Gent last year.

Sir Chris - who was knighted earlier this year - was paid £6.88m in salary and bonuses last year.

On top of his basic salary of £1.07m, Sir Chris received a bonus of £10m, half of which was paid in shares.

Today chairman Lord MacLaurin vigorously defended the amount of money paid to Vodafone directors, claiming it was on a par with packages paid to senior executives around the world.

But he conceded that a number of shareholders were concerned about the group’s remuneration policies and said: ‘‘We will be conducting a thorough review of remuneration this year.’’