Remuneration Information • Jun 15, 2015
Remuneration Information
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[AGM Inspection copy]
Shanks Group plc
Rules adopted by the Board on 8 May 2015 and notified to HMRC under Schedule 3 to the Income Tax (Earnings and Pensions) Act 2003 on 2015 with unique reference number
In these Rules (unless the context otherwise requires) the following words and phrases have the following meanings:
"Act" means the Income Tax (Earnings and Pensions) Act 2003;
"Admitted" means admitted to the official list maintained by the FCA and admitted to trading on the London Stock Exchange's market for listed securities;
"Announcement Date" means any date on which the results of the Group for any period are announced;
"Application Period" means such period of not less than 14 days and not more than 21 days commencing on the day following an Invitation Date as may be determined by the Board;
"Associated Company" has the meaning given to it in paragraph 47 of Schedule 3 to the Act except for the purposes of Rules 9.4(f) and 9.5 where it has the meaning given to it by paragraph 35(4) of Schedule 3 to the Act;
"Board" means the board of directors from time to time of the Company (or the directors present at a duly convened meeting of such board) or a duly authorised committee or person or group of persons;
"Bonus Date" means:
"Commencement Date" means the date on which the Scheme is approved by the shareholders of the Company;
"Company" means Shanks Group plc;
"Company Event" means any of the following events:
where:
(A) the reference in paragraph (a)(i) above to the issued ordinary share capital of the Company does not include any capital already held by the person making the offer or a person connected with that person (as defined in section 718 of the Act) and the reference in paragraph (a)(ii) above to the shares in the Company does not include any shares already held by the person making the offer or a person connected with that person (as defined in section 718 of the Act); and
becomes binding on the shareholders covered by it;
"Compulsory Acquisition Provisions" means the provisions contained in sections 979 to 985 of the Companies Act 2006;
"Constituent Company" means any Member of the Group which is for the time being designated by the Board as a participating company in the Scheme;
"Continuous Service" means the aggregate amount of service with:
provided that:
employment, any such period of absence shall be deemed to have formed part of such employee's continuous service;
"Control" has the meaning given to it by section 719 of the Act;
"Date of Grant" means the date on which the Board grants an Option in accordance with Rule 5.1;
"Dealing Day" means any day on which the London Stock Exchange is open for the transaction of business;
"Eligible Employee" means any employee or director of a Constituent Company:
provided that:
"Employees' Share Scheme" has the meaning given to it in section 1166 of the Companies Act 2006;
"Exercise Price" means the price per Share at which a Participant may exercise an Option, established in accordance with Rule 6;
"FCA" means the Financial Conduct Authority (or any successor body exercising its functions under part VI of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000);
"Group" means the Company and its Subsidiaries from time to time;
"HMRC" means Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs;
"Internal Reorganisation" means any compromise, arrangement or offer (including any Company Event) after which, in the reasonable opinion of the Board, Control of the Company remains substantially in the hands of the same person(s) as beforehand;
"Invitation" means an invitation to apply for the grant of an Option issued by the Board in accordance with Rule 3;
"Invitation Date" means the date upon which invitations to apply for Options are issued by the Board in accordance with Rule 3.2;
"London Stock Exchange" means London Stock Exchange plc or any successor company or body carrying on the business of London Stock Exchange plc;
"Member of the Group" means the Company or any one of its Subsidiaries from time to time;
"Non-UK Company Re-organisation Arrangement" has the meaning given to that term in paragraph 47A of Schedule 3 to the Act;
"Option" means a right to acquire a specified number of Shares at the Exercise Price in accordance with the Rules;
"Participant" means any individual who has been granted and continues to hold an Option or (where the context admits) the personal representatives of any such individual;
"Personal Data" has the meaning given to that term in section 1(1) of the Data Protection Act 1998;
"Relevant Transfer" has the meaning given to that term in Rule 9.4(e);
"Repayment" means, in relation to a Savings Contract, the amount of the contributions repayable and, where relevant, of any bonus and/or interest payable on the termination of the Savings Contract;
"Restriction" has the meaning given to that term in paragraph 48(3) of Schedule 3 to the Act;
"Rules" means these rules as from time to time amended in accordance with their provisions by the Board or by the Company in general meeting;
"Savings Contract" means a certified SAYE savings arrangement within the meaning of section 703(1) of the Income Tax (Trading and Other Income) Act 2005 and which has been approved by HMRC for the purposes of Schedule 3 to the Act;
"Schedule 3 SAYE option scheme" means an SAYE option scheme which meets the requirements of Schedule 3 to the Act;
"Scheme" means this scheme as governed by the Rules;
"Scheme-related Employment" means the office or employment by virtue of which a Participant is eligible to participate in the Scheme;
"Share" means a fully paid ordinary share in the capital of the Company which satisfies the conditions specified in paragraphs 18 to 20 inclusive and paragraph 22 of Schedule 3 to the Act;
"Subsidiary" means a company which is both under the Control of the Company and is a subsidiary of the Company (within the meaning of section 1159 of the Companies Act 2006);
Where the context so permits, the singular shall include the plural and vice versa and the masculine gender shall include the feminine. Any reference to a statutory provision is to be construed as a reference to that provision as for the time being amended or re-enacted and shall include any regulations or other subordinate legislation made under it.
The Scheme shall commence on the Commencement Date and shall be known as The Shanks Group plc 2015 Sharesave Scheme.
On or prior to an Invitation Date the Board may decide in its absolute discretion:
The Board may issue an Invitation on any date which falls:
Where an Invitation is issued, it shall be sent to all Eligible Employees and shall state:
permitted by legislation and by the terms of the Savings Contract from time to time);
Any accidental failure or omission to deliver an Invitation to an Eligible Employee shall not invalidate the grant of an Option to any other Eligible Employee.
Applications for Options under the Scheme shall be in such form as the Board may require and each:
The Repayment due under each Participant's Savings Contract shall, as nearly as practicable, equal the amount for which Shares may be acquired under the related Option if exercised in full and, therefore, each application shall be treated as being for an Option over the largest whole number of Shares which can be acquired at the Exercise Price with the Repayment under the related Savings Contract (following any adjustment under Rules 3.5(b)(i) and 4).
Subject to Rule 4.2, where the Board in its discretion imposes a limit on the number of Shares in respect of which Options may be granted in respect of any Invitation and applications are received which would, if met in full, exceed that limit, the monthly savings contribution chosen by each applicant under the Savings Contract shall, on or before the Date of Grant, be reduced proportionately (and in the same proportions) to the extent necessary to fall within such limit, provided that:
If, having scaled down applications as described in Rule 4.1, the number of Shares available is insufficient to enable Options to be granted to all Eligible Employees making valid applications, the Board may determine in its absolute discretion that no Options shall be granted.
Within 30 days (or, where applications are scaled back under Rule 4, 42 days) after:
and subject to the limitations and conditions contained in the Scheme, the Board may grant Options pursuant to an Invitation and, if it does so, shall grant an Option to each Eligible Employee who has made a valid application over that number of Shares for which an application is treated as having been made under Rule 3.6.
No Option may be granted:
No payment shall be required from a Participant on the grant of an Option. The Board shall grant Options by deed in such form as the Board shall decide. A single deed of grant may be executed in favour of any number of Participants.
Each Participant shall on, or as soon as possible after, the Date of Grant be issued with a certificate as evidence of the grant of an Option.
Neither an Option nor any right in respect of it may be transferred, pledged, mortgaged or encumbered in any way by a Participant or his personal representatives. In the event of any breach or purported breach of this Rule, an Option will lapse immediately. This Rule 5.5 does not prevent the transmission of an Option to the personal representatives of a deceased Participant nor does it prevent those personal representatives from exercising an Option in accordance with the Rules or the law of succession.
Notwithstanding the above, no Option shall be granted to any individual who is ineligible to participate in the Scheme at the Date of Grant by virtue of paragraph 10 of Schedule 3 to the Act.
The Exercise Price of an Option shall be stated at the Date of Grant and shall be such amount as the Board shall determine provided it is not less than the higher of:
For the purposes of Rule 6.1(b), the market value of a Share on the Date of Grant shall be:
For the purposes of this Rule 6, the market value of Shares which are subject to any Restriction shall be determined as if that Restriction did not apply.
The Exercise Price shall be shown in the Option certificate referred to in Rule 5.4 and is subject to adjustment in accordance with Rule 8.
Subject to such adjustments as may be made in accordance with Rule 8, no Option may be granted on any proposed Date of Grant if, as a result, the aggregate number of Shares issued or committed to be issued pursuant to grants made under the Scheme and pursuant to grants or appropriations made during the ten years preceding such Date of Grant under all other Employees' Share Schemes established by the Company would exceed ten per cent of the issued ordinary share capital of the Company on that Date of Grant.
For the avoidance of doubt, Shares which have been the subject of Options or of rights granted under any other Employees' Share Scheme which have lapsed or been released shall not be taken into account for the purposes of this Rule 7.
For the purposes of the limit contained in Rule 7.1, the reference to Shares issued or committed to be issued shall include Shares transferred from treasury or committed to be so transferred unless institutional shareholder guidelines cease to require such Shares to be counted.
In the event of any variation in the share capital of the Company by way of capitalisation of profits or reserves or by way of rights or any consolidation or sub-division or reduction of capital or otherwise, then the number, nominal value and description of Shares subject to any Options, the Exercise Price and, where an Option has been exercised but, as at the date of the variation of capital referred to above, no Shares have been allotted or transferred pursuant to such exercise, the number of Shares which may be so allotted or transferred and the price at which they may be acquired, may be adjusted by the Board in such manner and with effect from such date as the Board may determine to be appropriate provided always that:
(b) no adjustment shall be made which would reduce the Exercise Price of any Option to subscribe for Shares below the nominal value of a Share unless and to the extent that:
(i) the Board is authorised to capitalise from the reserves of the Company a sum equal to the amount by which the nominal value of the Shares subject to the Option exceeds the aggregate adjusted Exercise Price; and
The Board shall notify Participants in such manner as it thinks fit of any adjustment made under Rule 8.1 and may call in, cancel, endorse, issue or re-issue any Option certificate as a result of any such adjustment.
Save as provided in Rules 9.4, 9.6 and 10, an Option may not be exercised earlier than the Bonus Date of the related Savings Contract.
Save only as provided in Rule 9.6, no Option may be exercised later than six months after the Bonus Date of the related Savings Contract.
Subject to Rules 9.4 and 9.6, an Option may be exercised within six months after the Bonus Date of the related Savings Contract by a Participant who is a director or employee of a Constituent Company or by a Participant who is at the Bonus Date a director or employee of a company which is not a Constituent Company but which is an Associated Company of the Company or a company under the Control of the Company.
Subject to Rule 10, if a Participant ceases to hold Scheme-related Employment by reason of:
(h) any other reason, provided that such cessation is more than three years from the Date of Grant of the Option;
an Option may be exercised during the period of six months from the date of cessation notwithstanding that the Bonus Date has not yet occurred.
No person shall be treated for the purposes of Rule 9.4 as ceasing to hold Scheme-related Employment until that person ceases to hold office or employment with:
In the event of the death of a Participant:
If an Option becomes exercisable under any provision of the Scheme before the Bonus Date, it shall be exercisable only over the number of Shares the aggregate Exercise Price of which equals (as nearly as may be), but does not exceed the Repayment made under the related Savings Contract but excluding any contributions made directly by the Participant except to the extent that such are:
and the Option shall cease to be exercisable over any Shares in excess of that number in respect of which it was granted. For the avoidance of doubt, any Repayment under the Savings Contract shall exclude the Repayment of any contributions made in advance under the Savings Contract the due date for payment of which falls or would have fallen more than one month after the date on which Repayment is made.
An Option shall be exhausted and automatically cancelled immediately after it is first exercised notwithstanding that it shall not have been exercised in respect of all of the Shares over which the Option was granted.
If a Company Event occurs, an Option becomes exercisable immediately following the Company Event and may, subject to any agreement pursuant to Rule 10.2, be exercised until the earliest of:
If a company (the "Acquiring Company") obtains Control of the Company as a result of a Company Event, any Participant may, within the relevant period set out in paragraph 38(3) of Schedule 3 to the Act, by agreement with the Acquiring Company, release an Option (the "Old Option") in consideration of the grant to him of a new option (the "New Option") which satisfies the requirements of paragraph 39 of Schedule 3 to the Act and is over shares in the Acquiring Company (or another company which satisfies subparagraph (b) or (c) of paragraph 18 of Schedule 3 to the Act in relation to the Acquiring Company). The New Option shall, for all other purposes of the Scheme, be treated as having been acquired at the same time as the Old Option in consideration of the release of which it is granted. In relation to any New Option and where appropriate in the context of that New Option:
Rule 10.1 shall not apply in the case of an Internal Reorganisation, unless the Acquiring Company fails to make an offer to Participants to release their Options in accordance with Rule 10.2 within one week of the date of the relevant Company Event, in which case Rule 10.1 shall apply as if the event triggering the exercise of Options had occurred on the day following the end of the period of one week mentioned above.
If the Company passes a resolution for voluntary winding up, any Subsisting Option may be exercised within six months after the passing of the resolution.
For the purposes of this Rule 10 other than Rule 10.3, a person shall be deemed to have obtained Control of a Company if he and others acting in concert with him have together obtained Control of it.
The exercise of an Option pursuant to the preceding provisions of this Rule 10 shall be subject to the provisions of Rule 12.
An Option, whenever granted, shall lapse and cease to be exercisable upon the earliest to happen of the following:
An Option shall be exercised by the Participant lodging with the Secretary of the Company at its registered office (or otherwise as may be notified to Participants from time to time):
or in such other manner as may be notified to Participants from time to time, including via an online share administration portal.
The date of exercise of the Option shall be the date of receipt by the Company of the items referred to in Rule 12.1.
It is a condition of the exercise of an Option under the Scheme that payment for the Shares shall not exceed the amount of the Repayment to the Participant under the Savings Contract to which he has contributed in relation to the Option. If, upon the exercise of an Option, the Repayment then due to a Participant under his Savings Contract is less than the amount required to pay for all the Shares in respect of which it is purportedly exercised, the Option shall be treated as exercised only in respect of such number of Shares as may be acquired with the amount of the Repayment and shall lapse as to the excess.
Subject to:
the Board shall within 30 days of the date of exercise of an Option cause the Company to allot and issue, or procure the transfer of, the relevant Shares and, in the case of certificated shares, send or cause to be sent to the Participant who has exercised the Option a share certificate for the Shares in respect of which the Option is exercised. The Company may alternatively arrange for the Shares to be issued or transferred to a nominee appointed by the Company to be held on behalf of the Participant.
Shares issued pursuant to the Scheme will rank pari passu in all respects with the Shares already in issue except that they and any Shares transferred pursuant to the Scheme will not rank for any dividend or other distribution of the Company paid or made by reference to a record date falling prior to the date of issue or transfer.
If and for so long as the Shares are Admitted, the Company shall as soon as practicable after any such allotment, apply to the FCA and the London Stock Exchange for permission for the allotted Shares to be Admitted. Any application may be postponed at the discretion of the Board until application can be made in respect of such number of Shares as the Board considers appropriate.
The Company shall maintain sufficient unissued share capital to satisfy all rights to subscribe for Shares from time to time under subsisting Options.
This Scheme shall not form part of any contract of employment between any Member of the Group or any Associated Company of the Company and any employee of any such company and the rights and obligations of any individual under the terms of his office or employment with any such company shall not be affected by his participation in the Scheme or any right which he may have to participate in the Scheme.
Participation in the Scheme shall be on the express condition that:
No individual shall have any claim against a Member of the Group or any Associated Company of the Company arising out of his not being admitted to participation in the Scheme which (for the avoidance of all, if any, doubt) is governed entirely by the Rules.
No Eligible Employee or Participant shall be entitled to claim compensation from any Member of the Group or any Associated Company of the Company in respect of any sums paid by him pursuant to the Scheme or for any diminution or extinction of his rights or benefits (actual or otherwise) under any Option held by him consequent upon the lapse for any reason of any Option held by him or otherwise in connection with the Scheme and each such company shall be entirely free to conduct its affairs as it sees fit without regard to any consequences under, upon or in relation to the Scheme or any Option or Participant.
The Board may make and vary such regulations (not being inconsistent with the Scheme) as it thinks fit for the administration and implementation of the Scheme. The Board's decision on any matter concerning the Scheme or its interpretation shall be final and binding.
The Scheme shall be administered under the direction of the Board who may at any time and from time to time by resolution and without other formality delete, amend or add to the Rules of the Scheme in any respect provided that:
(b) no alteration to a key feature (as that term is defined in paragraph 40B(8) of Schedule 3 to the Act) of the Plan shall have effect at any time at which the Scheme is and is intended to remain a Schedule 3 SAYE option scheme where such an alteration would cause the scheme to cease to be a Schedule 3 SAYE option scheme;
(c) no deletion, amendment or addition to the advantage of Participants may be made to any of the provisions of the Scheme relating to:
except with the prior approval of the Company in general meeting, unless the deletion, amendment or addition is minor and to benefit the administration of the Scheme, to obtain or maintain the status of the Scheme as a Schedule 3 SAYE scheme, to obtain or maintain favourable tax, exchange control or regulatory treatment for Participants or any Member of the Group or any Associated Company of the Company or to take into account existing or proposed legislation.
Subject to Rule 14.2(b) and notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in these Rules, the Board may at any time by resolution and without further formality:
The Board's decision on any matter relating to the interpretation of the Rules and any other matters concerning the Scheme (including the rectification of errors or mistakes of procedure or otherwise) shall be final and binding.
Any notice or other communication under or in connection with the Scheme may be given:
Items sent by post shall be pre-paid and shall be deemed to have been received 72 hours after posting. Items send by electronic mail shall be deemed to have been received at the expiration of 24 hours from when they were sent.
The Company shall bear the costs of setting up and administering the Scheme. However, the Company may require any Participating Company to reimburse the Company for any costs borne by the Company directly or indirectly in respect of such Participating Company's officers or employees.
The Company shall maintain all necessary books of account and records relating to the Scheme.
The Board shall be entitled to authorise any person to execute on behalf of a Participant, at the request of the Participant, any document relating to the Scheme, in so far as such document is required to be executed pursuant to the Scheme.
The Company may send copies to Participants of any notice or document sent by the Company to the holders of Shares.
If any Option certificate becomes worn out, defaced or lost, it may be replaced on such evidence being provided as the Board may require.
By participating in the Plan, a Participant consents to the collection, retention, use, processing and transfer (whether between themselves or to any third party and including transfer to countries outside the European Economic Area) of his Personal Data by any Member of the Group, any of their Associated Companies, the trustees of any employee benefit trust, any administrator of the Scheme or the Company's registrars or brokers for the purposes of implementing and operating the Scheme.
The Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 shall not apply to this Scheme nor to any Option granted under it and no person other than the parties to an Option shall have any rights under it nor shall it be enforceable under that Act by any person other than the parties to it.
The Scheme may be terminated at any time by a resolution of the Board or by a resolution of the Company in general meeting and shall in any event terminate on the tenth anniversary of the Commencement Date. On termination, no further Options shall be granted but such termination shall not affect the subsisting rights of Participants.
These Rules shall be governed by and construed in accordance with English law.
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