Shareholder Executive

The Shareholder Executive managed a portfolio of businesses with a combined turnover of around £12 billion. The businesses varied and could be in the form of a limited company, public limited company, limited liability partnership, statutory corporation, trading fund, executive agency, non-departmental public body or non-ministerial government department.

It advised the government on drafting parts of the Postal Services Act 2011 and worked on the privatisation of Royal Mail and the possible mutualisation of Post Office Ltd. It was also involved in establishing the UK Green Investment Bank, the Public Data Group and the British Business Bank.[1]

It was not responsible for the government's shares in UK banks, which were managed by UK Financial Investments (UKFI), or the government's property holdings, which were managed by the Government Property Unit (GPU).

The Shareholder Executive was originally established in September 2003 as part of the Cabinet Office. In 2004 it moved to the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI).

In 2007 the National Audit Office published a report into the Shareholder Executive. This was broadly positive but had some misgivings about its location in the DTI.

Following the split of the DTI in 2007, ShEX moved to the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) and then to its successor, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) in 2009.

The Shareholder Executive was originally involved in the government's nationalisation of Northern Rock and Bradford & Bingley at the start of the banking crisis in 2008. It then began the process of splitting off Northern Rock's 'bad bank' mortgage business to form Northern Rock. All bank shareholdings were transferred to UK Financial Investments in November 2008.

In 2011 the Government Property Unit was moved from the Shareholder Executive to the Cabinet Office as part of the new Efficiency and Reform Group.

In 2015, the government announced that the Shareholder Executive would be transferred to HM Treasury and became subsidiary of UK Government Investments, along with UK Financial Investments.[2] This was due to occur with the end of the government fiscal year on 1 April 2016.

The Portfolio Unit contains businesses where the Shareholder Executive have a shareholding mandate, although the shares themselves are owned by government departments.[3] Its role is either accountable to ministers directly ('executive'), working alongside shareholding teams within departments ('joint team') or advising department shareholder teams ('advisory'). Most businesses are wholly owned by the government, but some are partly owned.

The Corporate Finance Practice contains businesses where the Shareholder Executive has no clear shareholding mandate and its only role is to provide advice to the relevant government department.[4]

The Shareholder Executive has previously been responsible for a number of other businesses that have since either been sold, moved to other areas of government or dissolved.

• Actis – remaining stake sold in 2012
• Army Base Repair Organisation – merged into Defence Support Group in 2008
• Bradford & Bingley – moved to UKFI in 2008
• British Energy – remaining stake sold during takeover by EDF Energy in 2009
• British Nuclear Fuels – broken up and ceased activities in 2009
• British Waterways – removed from portfolio to become charitable trust in 2012
• Defence Aviation Repair Agency – merged into Defence Support Group in 2008
• Eurostar – remaining stake sold in 2015
• Fire Service College – removed from portfolio in 2007
• Forensic Science Service – dissolved in 2012
• Covent Garden Market Authority – moved to Government Property Unit in 2011
• Northern Ireland Water removed from portfolio in 2010
• Northern Rock – moved to UKFI in 2008
• Northern Rock (Asset Management) moved to UKFI in 2008
• Qinetiq – remaining stake sold in 2008
• Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre – moved to Government Property Unit in 2011
• Partnerships UK – dissolved in 2011
• Royal Mail – remaining stake sold in 2015
• Scottish Water – removed from portfolio in 2011
• The Tote – sold to Betfred in 2011
• UK Atomic Energy Authority – commercial business unit sold to Babcock International Group in 2009

UK Financial Investments

• Official website
• Shareholder Executive annual review 2013 to 2014
• Shareholder Executive annual review 2014 to 2015