Bank and oil bosses strike gold

The company annual reporting season is now in full swing and has brought with it the usual crop of huge pay rises for fat cat directors. Topping the list is Sir Peter Middleton, chair of Barclays bank, who got a 331.1% rise taking him to £1,759,000 in 1999. His salary was revealed just as the bank was closing 171 branches with the loss of 7,500 jobs.

Barclay's new chief executive Matthew Barrett got £1,346,000 for just three months' work, including a £638,000 "annual" bonus.

At BP Amoco two executives struck liquid gold following the merger of the two oil groups. Chief executive Sir John Browne got a 59.1% rise to £1,451,000 while the executive co-chair Larry Fuller got a smaller pay rise - 49% - but earned more at £1,502,000.

Meanwhile, over at rival Shell, chair Mark Moody-Stuart got a 52.1% pay rise to £969,872, largely as a result of a performance-related bonus being paid in 1999 but not the year before. Group managing director Philip Watts also got a huge 58.9% pay rise taking him to £708,147 a year.