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Conrad Black | 08.07.2009 12:06 | Indymedia Server Seizure | Analysis | Repression | Terror War | World

Expose!
Time now: Wed Jul 8 13:01:07 BST 2009
Article pre-published as Stuart Rose tries to avoid child killing in Sri Lanka by repressive means.

Judge for yourself! If you got a head on your shoulder that is.

Have you got the guts to do something about it though?!

 http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/retailandconsumer/2792943/Marks-and-Spencers-AGM-Sir-Stuart-Rose-faces-the-shareholders.html

Text of the prepared article by (James Hall, Retail Edito) as follows ....

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Marks & Spencer's AGM: Sir Stuart Rose faces the shareholders


Published: 3:55PM BST 09 Jul 2008
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James Hall reports from M&S AGM where Sir Stuart Rose faces shareholders questions
Marks & Spencer chief executive Sir Stuart Rose is poised for a fiery AGM.
Sir Stuart turns on the charm

James Hall, Retail Editor, reports from the Royal Festival Hall on London's South Bank, where two thousand Marks & Spencer shareholders gathered for the group's annual general meeting.

Sir Stuart Rose has faced a flurry of criticism over his controversial recent promotion from chief executive to executive chairman, and M&S's dire recent performance. Last week, its shares lost 33pc of their value after a shock profit warning.

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The meeting kicked off at two o'clock. However many of M&S's fiercely loyal shareholders arrived shortly after the doors opened at midday to take advantage of the free M&S lunch on offer.

* M&S: The Stuart and Philip show
* Jeff Randall: Sir Stuart may need help
* Sir Stuart feels M&S shareholder ire

Below are some highlights from the colourful AGM.
The protagonists:

Sir Stuart Rose, the executive chairman of M&S
Sir David Michels, the deputy chairman and man charged with finding a successor to Sir Stuart
Ian Dyson, M&S's finance director
Teresa Vanneck-Surplice, famously vocal private shareholder who last year told the AGM that everything she was wearing was from M&S rival Primark. (Rose's response: "It won't last.")

1:45pm Carnival atmosphere at the AGM. Fifteen minutes to go and I've spoken to dozens of shareholders here at the Royal Festival Hall (between their mouthfuls of free ice cream, sandwiches and organic fruit, that is).

They are all overwhelmingly in favour of Sir Stuart. Just spotted Teresa Vanneck-Surplice. Her hair is bright red, hard to miss her. She says that Rose is doing a "wonderful" job. She is also lobbying Kate Bostock, clothing director, for a part-time job...

1:55pm Just caught Sir Stuart before he goes on stage. He says he has not had a single person come up to him who disagrees with what he's doing.

"They are telling me three things. They are 100 per cent behind me, they say if people don't think there's a slowdown they're stupid, and that they are ordinary people who are feeling the squeeze". Despite recent woes he is being given the rock star treatment...

2:40pm Sir Stuart tells the audience that the economic environment has "changed significantly" since last year. He says M&S felt it first. "M&S is a bit like an early warning system. A bit like the smoke detector in your kitchen..."

Sir Stuart says M&S will last another 100 years and that it is bigger than any one individual. Sir David Michels tells shareholders that Sir Stuart has been "leading architect" of M&S's recovery and defends his promotion to chairman. Shareholder questions are up next...
2.45pm

First heckling of day. Sir Stuart says customers support M&S for charging for plastic bags. "Rubbish" shout a few shareholders.
3:10pm

Lady shareholders are complaining about clothing. Too small, not enough cotton, too expensive, too young, too old, not enough sleeves on summer dresses, British women's feet are different from other women's feet....

Sir Stuart deals with it all with aplomb, offering to take the ladies shopping.

Former deputy chairman Clinton Silver tells Sir Stuart that he "snatched M&S back from the brink of the abyss" when he joined four years ago to fight off Sir Philip Green's bid attempt.
3:30pm

A Mr Esridge asks Sir Stuart to comment on Jeff Randall's column in today's Daily Telegraph.

Sir Stuart tells everyone that he holds Jeff in great respect. He goes on to defend M&S's position and makes a joke about being compared to Gordon Brown in the column. He jokes that he has been subject to a flurry of insults this week, being compared to Robert Mugabe and an armadillo.

Slow handclapping at the longest and most tedious of questions from veteran shareholder John Farmer.
3:40pm

It's three forty and the chairman asks the audience if they want more questions. Show of hands.

They've had enough, so Sir Stuart allows three more. Sadly the first of those three could bore for England. He's been droning on for six minutes. Time for a cup of tea... Sir Stuart says no need for a dividend cut.

3:50pm I've heard them all now. "Why are there no Indian people on the board?," someone has just asked. These questions should be vetted.
3:52pm

Voting started on resolutions. Sir Stuart gives shareholders a lesson in using handheld voting machines.
3:57pm

A big one. Resolution six. Re-election of Sir Stuart.

'Are you nervous Stuart?' Asks Michels as people vote. He needn't be. 94.1 per cent vote in favour.

It doesn't mean too much though, as the vote doesn't include abstension. Sir Stuart's expected to have received a significant protest vote.
4.10pm

No more questions. There's a scrum for the free organic food being handed out alongside cups of tea. Sir Stuart's worked his magic, and shareholders happily trot off with their goody bags.

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Scum!
Stuart Rose is Bliar's mentor!!

Conrad Black
- e-mail: conrad-black@in-us-jail-bleeding-where -the -sun-never-shines.com

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