Roles of the Chairman and Group Chief Executive

The roles of the Chairman and Group Chief Executive are distinct and have been set out and approved by the Board. The Chairman’s main task is the management of the Board and its governance while the Group Chief Executive’s is the day-to-day management of the Group and the execution of Board-approved strategy.

The Chairman’s main duties outside the Group are set out in his biography under Board of Directors. His principal external positions during the year were as Senior Non-executive Director of the Court of the Bank of England, Chairman of Peninsular & Oriental Steam Navigation Company and as Non-executive Director of Carnival plc and Carnival Corporation, Inc. The Chairman’s contractual commitment to the Company is two days per week but in practice this is generally exceeded.