Latest news with #Hebblethwaite
ITV News
03-07-2025
- Business
- ITV News
Pay jumps 55% for P&O boss as ferry company posts loss of £91 million
The earnings of the boss of P&O Ferries soared in 2023, a year in which the company continued to be heavily loss-making. The much-delayed annual accounts have been filed to Companies House and will soon be published, but have been seen by ITV News and the Guardian. The accounts show that P&O lost £91.4 million before tax during 2023, down from £246 million the year before. Peter Hebblethwaite, the chief executive, was paid £683,000 - representing an increase of at least 55% on the earnings of P&O's highest-paid director in 2022. The rise in Hebblethwaite's pay is likely to fuel renewed anger, coming just a year after P&O sacked 786 crew without notice and replaced them with cheaper agency workers paid as little as £4.87 an hour. The financial accounts of P&O Ferries Division Holdings Limited show Hebblethwaite's earnings were higher than the amounts he disclosed to MPs last May. Hebblethwaite told the Business and Trade parliamentary select committee that he earned a £325,000 salary, plus a bonus of £183,000 for 2023. During his appearance, MPs asked if he was 'a pirate' who appeared to be 'robbing staff blind'. Hebblethwaite told MPs: 'I reflected on accepting that [bonus]. But ultimately I did decide to accept it.' He added: 'I do recognise it is not a decision that everyone would have made." P&O Ferries sacked its mainly British crews in March 2022 in order to cut its costs and avoid bankruptcy, but the company still lost money in 2023. In a note, accompanying the accounts, P&O's directors say the company 'has been on a transformational journey, as it has progressed its recovery from the challenges of the global Covid-19 pandemic, Brexit and the impact of the disruption caused by the change in the crewing model.' The company carried 4.5 million passengers in 2023, an increase on the year before when its service was disrupted by the sackings and the subsequent detention of some of its ships by the authorities. In 2019, P&O carried 7.7 million passengers. Freight volumes also remain well below pre-pandemic levels. The accounts state that P&O 'is not seeing the [freight] market growth it had previously predicted' and says 'recessionary pressures' are in part to blame. In adversity, P&O Ferries continues to rely on its owner, DP World, to stay in business. DP World - a company from Dubai that runs ports and shipping terminals around the world - has provided a letter of support, indicating a willingness to continue to fund P&O's losses. P&O is not currently repaying interest on a £295 million loan from DP World - instead the debt is accumulating. And there has been a sharp increase of lease liabilities to £241 million in 2023, compared with £14.5 million the previous year. P&O's accounts are nine months late, prompting MPs to question the company's viability, and are signed off by Just Audit & Assurance - a tiny four-person audit-firm that replaced KPMG, the accounting giant that resigned in March. The accounts were already overdue when Just Audit & Assurance were appointed. 'These delayed accounts are still incomplete. They also suggest P&O Ferries is in deep financial trouble,' said Professor Atul Shah of City University. He added: 'As a Limited Liability company which is of significant public interest to Britain, P&O Ferries can only continue trading because DP World is willing to underwrite its still considerable losses. That is a highly precarious situation to be in for most stakeholders.' Despite ongoing losses, P&O maintains that it is on a path to recovery, but its wage bill will have risen significantly in 2024. A change in the law in France and the UK now compels all ferry operators to pay the minimum wage to crews on the cross-channel routes. In its accounts, P&O says, 'We are unequivocally committed to adhering to the legal requirements of applicable national and international laws.' A spokesperson for P&O Ferries said: 'These results show the progress we're making in transforming the business. Losses are down and financial performance is improving. "Our focus on high-quality experience is driving growth across both tourism and freight, with more people choosing to travel with us and satisfaction scores rising. We're matching capacity to meet demand, and continue to invest in greener, more efficient vessels. 'Our accounts are prepared in accordance with relevant accounting standards and subject to independent audit in line with auditing standards.'
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
New faces coming to Chickasha City Council
Three new faces and one incumbent will join the Chickasha City Council following Tuesday's election. Ward 2 councilmember Georgianne Hebblethwaite will retain her position on the council. She received 53.7% of the vote, or 464 votes, while opponent Josh Rauls received 46.3%, or 400 votes. ' I'm really excited about the future of Chickasha. I'm happy with the outcome of the election,' Hebblethwaite said. However, Hebblethwaite said she is a little disappointed in the election turnout, which saw 864 total votes for Ward 2, 869 votes for Ward 3 and 874 votes for Ward 4. ' I'm still a little disappointed in the turnout for the election,' Hebblethwaite said. 'But that seems to be the case for all elections in our community. We really need to get more input from our citizens.' Kimberly Irving will fill the open seat for Ward 3 after receiving 52.7%, or 548 votes in Tuesday's election. 'This campaign was always about community, connection, and moving Chickasha forward — and I am ready to get to work doing just that,' Irving said in a Facebook post. 'I will serve with transparency, integrity, and a heart for the people of this city.' Dr. R.P. Ashanti-Alexander received 47.3% of the vote, or 411 votes. Ashanti-Alexander previously served on the city council from 2024 to 2024. Lisa Hatchett will fill the Ward 4 open position, narrowly defeating incumbent Kelly Boyd. Hatchett received 32.38% of the votes, or 283 votes, to Boyd's 31.35%, or 274 votes. 'I would just like to say thank you to everyone who supported me, voted for me, put a sign in their yard and believed in me,' Hatchett told the Express-Star Wednesday. 'I promise to do my absolute best to make you all proud and to do what I believe is the best for our wonderful city of Chickasha,' Hatchett added in a Facebook post, Hatchett also congratulated her fellow opponents for running a 'clean, well race' and to her follow council member-elects. 'It takes a lot for anyone to put themselves out there and I applaud everyone who did so,' she said. Candidate Eric Anderson received 25.29% of the vote, or 221 votes, and Virginia Savage received 10.98% or 96 votes. Clark Southard will take over the Position 1 seat for Ward 1 after the incumbent Brian Gerdes did not seek reelection. As Southard did not have any opponents, he was not on the ballot and has been a member-elect since the filing period ended in February. A county proposition for a one-eight of a percent sales tax to support the Grady County Senior Nutrition Center passed with 79.93% of the vote, or 2,680 votes. This sales tax will specially help the locations in Alex, Chickasha, Minco, Ninnekah, Rush Springs, Tuttle and Verden. The tax would commence on Jan. 1, 2026 and expire on Dec. 31, 2030.
Yahoo
02-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
New faces coming to Chickahsa City Council
Three new faces and one incumbent will join the Chickasha City Council following Tuesday's election. Ward 2 councilmember Georgianne Hebblethwaite will retain her position on the council. She received 53.7% of the vote, or 464 votes, while opponent Josh Rauls received 46.3%, or 400 votes. ' I'm really excited about the future of Chickasha. I'm happy with the outcome of the election,' Hebblethwaite said. However, Hebblethwaite said she is a little disappointed in the election turnout, which saw 864 total votes for Ward 2, 869 votes for Ward 3 and 874 votes for Ward 4. ' I'm still a little disappointed in the turnout for the election,' Hebblethwaite said. 'But that seems to be the case for all elections in our community. We really need to get more input from our citizens.' Kimberly Irving will fill the open seat for Ward 3 after receiving 52.7%, or 548 votes in Tuesday's election. 'This campaign was always about community, connection, and moving Chickasha forward — and I am ready to get to work doing just that,' Irving said in a Facebook post. 'I will serve with transparency, integrity, and a heart for the people of this city.' Dr. R.P. Ashanti-Alexander received 47.3% of the vote, or 411 votes. Ashanti-Alexander previously served on the city council from 2024 to 2024. Lisa Hatchett will fill the Ward 4 open position, narrowly defeating incumbent Kelly Boyd. Hatchett received 32.38% of the votes, or 283, votes, to Boyd's 31.35%, or 274 votes. "I would just like to say thank you to everyone who supported me, voted for me, put a sign in their yard and believed in me," Hatchett told the Express-Star Wednesday. 'I promise to do my absolute best to make you all proud and to do what I believe is the best for our wonderful city of Chickasha," Hatchett added in a Facebook post, Hatchett also congratulated her fellow opponents for running a "clean, well race" and to her follow council member-elects. "It takes a lot for anyone to put themselves out there and I applaud everyone who did so," she said. Candidate Eric Anderson received 25.29% of the vote, or 221 votes, and Virginia Savage received 10.98% or 96 votes. Clark Southard will take over the Position 1 seat for Ward 1 after the incumbent Brian Gerdes did not seek reelection. As Southard did not have any opponents, he was not on the ballot and has been a member-elect since the filing period ended in February. A county proposition for a one-eight of a percent sales tax to support the Grady County Senior Nutrition Center passed with 79.93% of the vote, or 2,680 votes. This sales tax will specially help the locations in Alex, Chickasha, Minco, Ninnekah, Rush Springs, Tuttle and Verden. The tax would commence on Jan. 1, 2026 and expire on Dec. 31, 2030.
