The Spectator

Calling for Agius’ head

Marcus Agius’ resignation this morning as chair of Barclays took few by surprise after being widely trailed over the weekend. But as ever, The Spectator was far ahead of the curve, with columnist Martin Vander Weyer calling on 5 May for Agius to go, nearly two months before the Libor scandal even broke. You can read his argument below.

A word of sympathy for Alison Carnwath, the chairman of Barclays’ remuneration committee, whose re-election to the bank’s board failed to win support from a quarter of its shareholders at last week’s turbulent AGM. Investors were right to be enraged that the bank had ladled out three times as much in bonuses for 2011 as it paid in dividends — almost a third of them declined to support the pay proposals, a signal of how sentiment is shifting in the investment world.

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