Claim: AstraZeneca CEO Brennan's Pay Too High; Spends Too Much on Lobbying

British corporate governance watchdog group PIRC is urging AstraZeneca shareholders to vote against management’s annual report and compensation plan because the company gives too much money to U.S. politicians and its top executives.

The move signals the difference between the U.S. and the U.K. on compensation for executives: In the U.K., there is more pressure for compensation to be linked to performance. In the U.S., there is a boardroom culture of pay-for-failure.

AstraZeneca contributed $815,838 this year to U.S. political parties and wants spend up to $250,000 more, PIRC said, according to Dow Jones Newswires. PIRC said:

We do not consider political donations to be an appropriate use of shareholders’ funds. Therefore we recommend that shareholders oppose the company’s report and accounts to express concern.

AZ brushed off the criticism, saying its political donations were appropriate.

AZ CEO David Brennan received compensation of $4.7 million in 2008, a 9 percent increase from 2007, PIRC said. That’s a fairly average for U.S. pharma chiefs, many of whom received much larger compensation packages for running much smaller firms.

Top pharma executives in the U.S. were rewarded with pay increases last year despite being convicted of crimes (Medicis), presiding over product recalls (Noven), making massive losses (Medarex), and general “below-target performance” (Merck). See the story ladder below for BNET’s previous coverage of pharma executive compensation.

PIRC has launched criticism at AZ — and drawn blood — before. Former director Percy Barnevik was forced to give back £37m of a £61m pension he awarded himself when he left his old company, engineering group ABB, to join AZ’s board as chairman, following PIRC protests in 2002. He was one of three AZ directors linked to the powerful Wallenger family of investors.

• See previous BNET stories on pharma executive compensation:
• Noven Execs Got Bonuses Despite 2 Product Recalls
• Onyx Makes a Profit and Management Takes the Cash
• Medarex Execs Got 10% Pay Raise Despite Delivering Nothing
• Sepracor CEO Got 44% Raise as He Planned 940 Layoffs
• Medicis Doubled Pay of Exec Convicted of Off-Label Sales
• Elan CEO Martin’s Pay Cut by Half
• Mylan Execs Get 41% Raise; CEO Takes Company Jet on Vacation for “Security” Reasons
• Valeant Executive Pay Doubles to $19.7 Million Despite Quadrupling of Company’s Losses
  
• Shire CEO Compensation Report Successfully Conceals CEO Compensation
• Wyeth CEO Got 69% Pay Raise; Was “Required” to Use Helicopter; Plus $24 Million Pfizer Sale Bonus
• BMS Execs Get Cash Not to Ride Private Jets; 61% Pay Raise to $59 Million
• Allergan CEO Pyott Received Pay Raise to $11.9 Million
• Abbott CEO White Takes a Pay Cut
• Gilead Executive Pay: Modest Raises for Outstanding Performance
• Gilead Deal Gives CV Therapeutics CEO $8.4 Million Payday Despite Lack of Profits
  
• Pfizer’s Kindler Got $4.2 Million Pay Raise, Despite What Business Press Says
  
• Pfizer Execs’ Golden Parachute Is Actually a Pay Cut
  
• Genentech’s Levinson May Have No Change-of-Control Agreement in Roche Deal
  
• Amgen CEO Sharer: Options? No Thanks. I’ll Just Take the Cash.
  
• Schering CEO Hassan Has $59 Million Buyout Agreement in Merck Merger
  
• Merck Executive Pay: $36 million, Use of Private Jet, Cash Bonuses Despite Failures
• Eli Lilly Execs Receive $48 Million in Pay; Plus Chairman Taurel Adds $40 Million Nest Egg
  
• Novo Nordisk Executive Compensation: A Picture of Modesty (Except for the Car Expenses)
• As Layoffs Begin, Wyeth Execs Get $75 Million Severance Package
• How Pharma’s CEO Pay Packages Measure Up