Yorkshire Water admits it should have been 'more transparent' with off-shore CEO payments
Yorkshire Water has admitted it should have been “more transparent about” off-shore payments to embattled boss Nicola Shaw on top of her main salary and bonus.
Ms Shaw received two £660,000 payments for the 2023-24 and 2024-25 financial years from Kelda Holdings, Yorkshire Water’s Jersey-registered parent company.
These were not published directly in Yorkshire Water’s annual report and executive pay does not have to be declared in Jersey.
The second payment is now being looked at “with urgency” by the water industry regulator Ofwat, as to whether it breaches the Government’s bonus ban.
They mean that Ms Shaw’s overall remuneration over the last two financial years has been more than £3m, at a time when serious pollution incidents have trebled, bills are set to increase by 41 per cent over the next five years and there is a hosepipe ban across the region.
Yorkshire Water has insisted the payment was for Ms Shaw’s additional work as CEO of Kelda Group, which included “investor engagement, financial oversight, and management”, however it has admitted she has not set hours or time commitments to the role.
Despite repeated questions by The Yorkshire Post, the company has refused to say whether Ms Shaw will receive another payment of £660,000 for the current financial year.
However, a letter from Yorkshire Water chair Vanda Murray to Harrogate and Knaresborough MP Tom Gordon appeared to imply the fees would continue.
It said: “We will disclose the value of Kelda payments to the CEO and CFO in Yorkshire Water’s accounts alongside core pay for the CEO and CFO.”
Mr Gordon told this paper: “This is nothing short of disgraceful. Nicola Shaw's role on Kelda Holdings is clearly a sinecure with no clearly defined responsibilities or time commitments.
“Providing the CEO with a poorly-defined role elsewhere in Yorkshire Water's company structure is an obvious attempt to circumvent the bonus ban.
“I'm not falling for it and bill payers in Yorkshire shouldn't fall for it either.”
A Yorkshire Water spokesperson said: “We recognise the strength of feeling that the issue has generated.
“Whilst the existence of this fee was already noted in Yorkshire Water’s annual reports, which are published on our website, we acknowledge that we should’ve been more transparent about these payments.
“We have now committed to disclosing the value of any Kelda related payments for our CEO and CFO as part of Yorkshire Water’s accounts in future.”