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16:17 - 16-May-2008
Grade was forced onto the defensive when shareholders at his annual meeting accused him of 'shoddy performance' and of being 'unfit' to hold the positions of both chief executive and chairman.
One called for him to hand back his £1m bonus while another said: 'I think your performance has been shoddy and you are not making the grade any more than (predecessor) Charles Allen did.'
A handful of investors harangued management over the performance of the shares which are down to 61.9p (off 1p on the day) from last year's 118p peak, amid fears over shrinking advertising revenues.
They were also unhappy that the board 'sullied shareholder funds with fines,' a reference to the record £5.7m penalty levied by regulator Ofcom for the premium-rate phone-line scandal, and the debacle that saw the sudden departure of
Dawn Airey, whose appointment as global content head was heralded amid much fanfare last year.
Grade defended his bonus by explaining that he had spent it all on ITV shares and batted away the attacks on his performance explaining: 'The turnaround plan was never going to be a quick fix. The lack of growth is recognised by the board.
'I have always said it will be 2009 before the growth will be made. We are disappointed that this has not been reflected in the share price.'
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The motorist feels somewhat battered from all sides, seeing the oil companies going off with cash in their pockets and the Treasury filling its coffers
Edmund King, President of the AA
