Safeway chairman to have dual role

Outgoing Safeway chairman David Webster will be at the helm of two companies while the supermarket’s takeover saga is completed, it emerged today.

Mr Webster, who has been a director of Safeway since its formation as Argyll Group in 1977, will become non-executive chairman of InterContinental Hotels on January 1.

Safeway confirmed today that the 58-year-old will remain as its chairman until Morrisons completes its takeover of the supermarket chain.

InterContinental said in October that it had chosen Mr Webster to step up from deputy chairman, but added that the timing hinged on developments in the long-running takeover struggle.

Since then, Morrisons has tabled a recommended £3bn (€4.25bn) offer, raising hopes that shareholders could approve a tie-up in February.

Mr Webster will take over from Ian Prosser, who is stepping down after 34 years with the company.

Prosser became chairman and chief executive of Bass – as the company was then known – in 1987 before the roles were split in 2000.

He later stood as chairman of InterContinental, the demerged hotels arm of the former Bass business.

Prosser said today: “The transformation of Bass, culminating in the creation of the InterContinental Hotels Group, is now complete.

“Accordingly, it is an appropriate time for me to hand over to a new chairman.”

The company’s portfolio includes 3,300 hotels, branded under names including Crowne Plaza, Holiday Inn and InterContinental.

It also has a controlling interest in Britvic, the second largest drinks manufacturer in the UK.

Mr Webster is the last surviving member of the team that formed Argyll and then turned it into a FTSE 100 Index company following its renaming as Safeway in 1996.

Mr Webster was appointed as chairman of the group in March 1997. He joined the board of InterContinental in April.