Tesco boss Dave Lewis gets £3m bonus and 12% payrise

Tesco returned to profit in 2015, posting a pre-tax gain of £162 million

David Lewis joined Tesco from Unilever in September 2014 (PA)

Dave Lewis, the chief executive of Tesco, has bagged a 12 per cent pay rise and a bonus of almost £3m for his celebrated turn-around of the struggling supermarket.

Tesco returned to profit in 2015, posting a pre-tax gain of £162 million.

These results were considered a triumph after the £6.4 billion loss racked up by Tesco in 2014 after £7 billion of write-downs, or reductions in the prices of its stores and other assets, and other charges.

Lewis, who joined from Unilever in September 2014, takes home a total of £4.63 million for 2015/16. His base salary rose from £570,000 to £1.25 million and his pension contribution rose £170,000 to £313,000.

Another £3 million in bonuses was awarded for the board's decision that he had successfully revived the group.

Deanna Oppenheimer, chair of the remuneration committee, said that targets for management were stretched last year in light of uncertainty in the supermarket sector and when all of Tesco's business indicators were on a steep, negative trend.

"In determining the final level of bonus payable, the Committee considered the wider performance of the Group and agreed management has reversed the negative trajectory and were making strong progress in delivering the turnaround plan," Oppenheimer said.

Shares in Tesco have been falling since Lewis warned that profit improvements would slow in the second half of the year. Shares have fallen by almost a third in the past 12 months to trade at 155.1p on Friday morning (May 13).