The CEO of Yorkshire Water, one of the UK’s largest water suppliers, has received £1.3 million in additional undisclosed payments since 2023 through an offshore parent company, the Guardian has revealed.
Nicola Shaw was paid £660,000 by Yorkshire Water’s Jersey-based parent firm, Kelda Holdings, during the 2023-24 and 2024-25 financial years. These payments were not included in the annual report of Yorkshire Water Services, the regulated subsidiary.
Initially, the company refused to disclose Shaw’s pay from Kelda Holdings, stating that the parent company was a “private entity registered in Jersey and subject to separate disclosure rules.” Only after the Guardian questioned how MPs and customers could scrutinise executive pay did Yorkshire Water confirm the amounts.
The company said it fully complies with regulator Ofwat’s pay disclosure rules and stressed that the extra payments for Shaw’s work with Kelda Holdings came from shareholders, not customers.
While regulated water firms must report directors’ pay in their annual accounts, parent companies are not required to disclose executive pay to regulators or the public. Offshore jurisdictions like Jersey have no obligation to reveal such payments.
Water companies have faced growing criticism in recent years over sewage spills into UK rivers and seas, alongside rising bills. Despite public anger over high executive pay, the Guardian recently reported that average CEO pay in the sector still rose by 5% in 2024-25.
In June, the government banned bonuses for water company bosses guilty of serious environmental breaches. Yorkshire Water was among six firms affected after agreeing to a £40 million penalty in March for excessive sewage spills due to poor maintenance. It was also fined £850,000 this week for releasing chlorinated water into a stream in 2017.
Gary Carter of the GMB union, which represents water workers, said: “This is yet another example of water companies ignoring public outrage over unjustifiable salaries. Hiding pay details only damages their reputation further—this has to stop.”
Yorkshire Water’s published accounts showed Shaw’s pay from the company fell by nearly a third in 2024-25, from £1,028,000 to £689,000. However, the accounts noted that Shaw and the CFO also received payments from Kelda Holdings, which are disclosed in Kelda’s financial statements—though these are not publicly filed due to Jersey’s lax reporting laws.
Singapore’s government owns a third of Kelda Holdings, with the rest held by US investor Corsair Capital, Germany’s DWS, and Australia’s SAS Trustee Corporation.
While withholding the pay details did not break any rules, it left MPs and customers unaware of whether Shaw’s total earnings had increased despite the bonus ban. Yorkshire Water stated that Shaw did not receive performance-related pay from Kelda but declined to share Kelda’s accounts.Here’s a rewritten version of your text in fluent, natural English while preserving the original meaning:
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The disclosure of additional payments means Shaw received a total of £1.7 million and £1.3 million from Kelda Group over two years. Inman was paid £440,000 by Kelda Group in 2024-25, in addition to a £662,000 salary.
A Yorkshire Water spokesperson said:
“We don’t believe our CEO’s investor-related work should be funded by customers. That’s why the £660,000 fee for investor engagement and financial oversight in 2024-25 was paid by shareholders. This reflects the importance of Nicola’s leadership during this period, which secured £500 million in direct shareholder investment for critical projects over the next five years, with another £600 million committed by March 2027.”
Rachael Maskell, Labour MP for York Central, responded:
“With burst pipes and polluted rivers, it’s shocking to discover Yorkshire Water’s CEO hid a £1.3 million payout. People paying their bills deserve better. This is exactly why water should be publicly owned—with full accountability for spending and executive benefits. I hope Labour’s upcoming audit reform and corporate governance bill will enforce transparency across utility companies.”
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