Outrage at Stephen Hester's bonus

By Neal Wallace

Stephen Hester, the boss of the Royal Bank of Scotland, has received a bonus in shares worth £963,000.

The award has been strongly criticised from a number of prominent politicians and unions, with Unite calling the amount "disgusting".

Labour has said that government promises to curb the amount paid out to executive were "utterly worthless", while Liberal Democrat minister Jeremy Browne said that Hester had a duty to turn the bonus down.

Shadow business secretary Chuka Umunna told the BBC that he would not have paid the banker any bonus: "Ministers have said that shareholders should play a more active role in reining in excess where they see it."

The broadcaster's business editor Robert Peston said that the reason the bonus was paid was because of a "real risk" that Hester and the rest of the board would leave their posts.