Morrisons chief handed £1.3m shares

Britain's fourth-biggest grocer said Mr Philips, who joins from

Canadian retailer Loblaw, had received an immediate award of 319,401 shares.

A further 120,965 shares will vest in March 2012, assuming he remains with the Bradford-based company, it added.

The awards will form part of his overall pay package, which will be included in its next annual report.

Mr Philips's predecessor, Marc Bolland, sparked controversy in February when he was handed a pay package worth 15m for joining clothing and foods group Marks & Spencer.

That included about 7.5m in compensation for awards that he might have received at Morrison, although some of that is linked to performance.

Morrison said Mr Philips had sold 131,218 of the shares that vest immediately to cover tax and National Insurance.

The firm's last annual report showed Mr Bolland received a basic salary of 850,000 and an annual bonus of 608,000. His total pay, including pension and benefits in kind, was 1.7m.