Ann: Full Year Statutory Accounts/Annual Report, page-6

Substituting “create” with “recover”, and “further” with “some”, would add some credibility to that statement.

We’ve seen more than 28% of shareholder value eroded over the past twelve months alone and not all of this can be reasonably attributed to market factors.

I will often hear in boardrooms the catch cry of “market factors” and “beyond our control”. If the issues contributing to these outcomes were not reasonably foreseen or effectively mitigated you have to question whether you have the right team in place to carry things forward.

That aside, where is the accountability? Who is owning this mess? Why don't we have performance based remuneration and a proportion of bonuses at risk based on enduring business benefit? And don’t give me this rubbish about needing to attract the best talent. The best talent is that which is sufficiently confident in their planning and execution as to have no issue entering into agreements such as this (subject to any at risk component being at risk based on their underperformance only).

Directors and executives continue to extract exorbitant wages and bonuses for failing to do what they’ve been fundamentally hired to do: act in good faith and for a proper purpose, and with due care, skill and diligence; faithfully execute their fiduciary duties; add enduring shareholder value; and reduce business risk.

At what point does ADV become yet another “lifestyle company”, slowly eroding shareholder value while directors continue to extract wages and bonuses, supported by periodic cap raises?