British Gas boss says 'no point' justifying £4.5m pay as people are struggling

19 January 2024 , 12:00

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Chris O'Shea., the boss of British Gas, has said there is "no point" trying to justify his pay package (Image: 2024 PA Media, All Rights Reserved)

The boss of British Gas's parent company, Chris O'Shea, admitted on BBC Breakfast that his £4.5 million salary is hard to justify, especially as many customers struggle with their bills.

"You can't justify a salary of that size" he said. "It's a huge amount of money, I am incredibly fortunate. I don't set my own pay, that's set by our remuneration committee."

Mr O'Shea revealed that this was the first bonus he'd accepted in years at Centrica, having previously given them up due to customer hardships. The company has allocated £100 million for a hardship fund, which has assisted around 21,000 customers since 2021 by cancelling up to £2,000 in debt.

He added: "I thought it was right that we put a lot of our money, a lot of our profits, into supporting customers. When asked why he accepts such high pay, he compared his situation to the presenters around him.

He added: "I suppose for the same reason, I mean, if you look, the average salary in the UK is around £30,000. All of us sitting here on this sofa will make substantially more than £30,000. It's not for me to set my own pay. It's not for you to set your own pay."

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"But you've got to recognise that when you've got people who are struggling, and I look at my mum who's on the basic state pension, it's just impossible to justify, so there's no point in trying to do that."

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Lawrence Matheson