Wetherspoon boss Tim Martin has slammed the “short-termism” of the UK’s corporate governance rules, which he claimed have led to the “failure or chronic underperformance” of many companies.
The pub chief’s latest outburst comes after Wetherspoons’ largest institutional shareholder, Columbia Threadneedle, failed to support the re-election of two directors at last year’s annual meeting.
Mr Martin said three-quarters of the pub operator’s non-executive directors felt compelled to offer their resignations as a result, which destabilised the company.
“There can be little doubt that the current system has directly led to the failure or chronic underperformance of many businesses, including banks, supermarkets, and pubs,” he said in a trading update for the 13 weeks to Oct 27.
Mr Martin also linked compliance with corporate governance guidelines with the collapse of companies including Carillion and Thomas Cook.
He added: “My view is the UK corporate governance system is up the spout – and is itself a threat to listed companies – and therefore to the UK economy.”
Wetherspoons said like-for-like sales rose by 5.3pc in its first quarter, while trading for the full year would be in line with expectations.
Shares in the pub chain have risen by more than a quarter so far this year, but fell 1.6pc to £15 in early trading.
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