Lord Barker has resigned as chairman of a company that owns an aluminum giant founded by Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska.
The resignation of the EN+ conservative, which owns metals company Rusal, came amid pressure to sever ties following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Mr Deripaska, an industrialist with close ties to Vladimir Putin, has been sanctioned in the US but not in the UK.
Lord Barker earned $4m (£3m) from EN+ in 2020 and $7.8m in 2019.
Although Lord Barker has resigned, the Sunday Times reported that he plans to take over large parts of the business as part of a restructuring aimed at distancing the company from Russia.
In a London stock exchange statement, EN+ said it was considering spinning off Rusal’s international business. It has not disclosed whether Lord Barker is part of its plans.
The firm said Lord Barker’s departure will take effect after he hands over the presidency to Christopher Bancroft Burnham, the firm’s current senior independent director.
- Who is not on the UK sanctions list?
Mr Deripaska is one of the richest men linked to President Putin – he has made billions from his stake in Russia’s aluminum industry, including EN+, in which he owns 45%.
He first became widely known in the UK in 2008 when it was revealed he was involved in talks of a Conservative Party donation through George Osborne. The donation never materialized – but the story sparked a dispute over links between British politicians and Russia’s elite at the time.
He has been subject to US sanctions since 2018 – but not in the UK.
Politicians with ties to Russian oligarchs have been criticized since the start of the war in Ukraine, with the Institute of Directors (IoD) saying it was “no longer tenable that British directors are involved in leadership roles in the Russian economy”.
“Although directors owe legal obligations to the companies on whose boards they serve, they should also feel a stronger moral obligation to uphold the fundamental values of freedom and democracy,” said Jonathan Geldart, Director General of the IoD.
In a poll of its members, the IoD said that 86% supported the view that all Brits should resign their Russian board mandates now.
Senior politicians also urged Lord Barker to sever ties with Mr Deripaska instead of continuing to work for companies linked to the billionaire.
Former Tory minister David Davis told the Sunday Times: “People like him should be barred from holding posts in these companies on legal grounds.”
Lord Barker was appointed Independent Chairman of EN+ following the company’s listing on the London and Moscow Stock Exchanges in 2017, before being appointed Executive Chairman in 2019.
He was previously a member of the House of Commons from 2001 to 2015 before being made a life peer. In 2019 he took a leave of absence from the House of Lords when he took up his post at EN+.
Separately, Sandra Stash, an American non-executive director of Russian steel company Evraz, has resigned from the company’s board.
Evraz is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is partly owned by Chelsea Football Club owner Roman Abramovich, who holds a 29% stake in the company.
Ms. Stash is the second board member of the company to resign in recent days. James Rutherford, a UK board member, resigned last week.
Add Comment