Singer to remain on SMG board as 'independent' non-exec

Adam Singer, the former head of the troubled cable business Telewest, is to remain on the board of SMG, the Scottish media company in which Telewest owns a 17 per cent stake, albeit in an "independent" capacity.

SMG said it had appointed Mr Singer, who was ousted from his position as chief executive of Telewest at the end of last month, as an independent non-executive director.

Previously, Mr Singer had been one of eight non-executive directors on SMG's board thanks to Telewest's shareholding, which entitles the cable company to have two representatives.

Mr Singer's departure from Telewest, however, leaves the cable company with just one representative, Stephen Cook, on the SMG board. It has no current plans to appoint a second representative to replace Mr Singer. A spokesman for SMG defended Mr Singer's appointment, saying there had been a "robust" nomination process and that the directors were happy with the decision.

"Adam's an experienced and far-sighted director, whose knowledge of the communications industry has been of great value to SMG over the years," Don Cruickshank, SMG's chairman, said.

Mr Singer is likely to earn about £25,000 a year in his role as an independent non-executive, in line with his peers. According to SMG's annual report and accounts, the bulk of the company's eight non-executive directors were paid £25,000 in cash and shares last year.

The move comes one week after Telewest said it was seeking shareholder approval to allow it to sell its 16.9 per cent stake in SMG over the next 12 months. The debt-laden company, which is widely expected to carry out a debt-for-equity swap, is putting the proposal to shareholders at an extraordinary general meeting on 4 September.

The move, analysts have predicted, is likely to see SMG, which owns the ITV franchises Scottish and Grampian, on the receiving end of a bid or get broken up. Its other media interests include Virgin Radio and Ginger Television as well as the newspapers The Herald and Sunday Herald.