A year ago, Chris O’Shea was in solidarity mode. The chief executive of Centrica, owner of British Gas, didn’t take an annual bonus because it would be “wrong” to do so when so many customers were on the wrong end of soaring energy bills.
The financial hardships haven’t obviously become any less hard over the past 12 months (especially for those unfortunate enough to be visited by a British Gas-appointed prepayment meter fitter) but O’Shea will take his full whack this time, including an annual bonus of £1.4m within an overall tally of £4.5m.
