Trade Minister’s £8.9m shares send-off from BT

New Trade Minister Lord Livingston has left his old employer, BT, with 2.6m shares worth £8.9m.

The telecoms giant said it “felt it was appropriate for Ian to receive the shares, given the major contribution he has made to BT’s turnaround”.

The former chief executive will collect 1.8m deferred shares plus a further 800,000 from a long-term bonus award, called the 2011 Incentive Share Plan (ISP), taking into account the fact he has left before the end of the 2013-14 financial year.

Chairman Sir Michael Rake said: “Ian has done a wonderful job for BT and so this is clearly reward for success. BT is a far healthier company than when he took over as CEO.”

Lord Livingston’s long-term ISP awards from 2012 and 2013 have lapsed. BT has also shaken up the pay for new chief executive Gavin Patterson, who will be able to earn much higher long-term bonuses than his predecessor, but the short-term awards will be slashed.

Mr Patterson’s potential maximum ISP award will soar to 400 per cent of salary against 240 per cent for Lord Livingston, 49. However, the maximum short-term bonus is cut from 400 per cent to 240 per cent. BT is shaking up the bonus scheme after “consultation with investors” and insisted the new bonus scheme was focused more on long-term results.