Persimmon boss picked pub for first big purchase after £40m bonus
Persimmon’s new boss spent almost £800,000 on a pub in his hometown as his first big personal purchase after receiving a £40m bonus this year.
Dave Jenkinson became the housebuilder’s interim chief executive last week after former boss Jeff Fairburn was forced out amid a furore over his £75m bumper bonus.
Jenkinson bought Shambles in Morpeth, Northumberland earlier this year – marking the first major buy for any of the company’s bosses, whose mammoth bonuses have come under intense scrutiny.
Critics says the FTSE 100 housebuilder’s payouts have been subsidised by the taxpayer-funded Help to Buy scheme. As group managing director, Jenkinson received £40m of the £800m handed out in Persimmon’s most recent bonus round, having bagged £20.4m the year before. Nearly half of the company’s shareholders voted against its remuneration report.
Jenkinson bought the Grade II-listed site’s freehold for £663,000 plus VAT of £119,340 in March this year, Land Registry documents show. A sign in the pub’s window says it will reopen soon as The Townhouse, according the Mail on Sunday, which first reported the purchase. Northumberland County Council does not list any current planning applications at the site.
The acquisition was made by Tonia Holdings Ltd, a business vehicle run by Jenkinson but jointly controlled by him and two others – Samantha Tonia Jenkinson and Tyne Jenkinson – according to Companies House data.
Regulatory filings show Jenkinson sold off 8,666 shares in Persimmon the same day he bought Shambles.
A Persimmon spokesperson could not immediately be reached.