Peace bid in Morrisons boardroom battle

SIR Ken Morrison and his deputy chairman David Jones were meeting today at the supermarkets group's Bradford headquarters in an attempt to settle the escalating dispute over the appointment of non-executive directors.

Former Next boss Jones, Morrisons' only non-executive, is determined to push through the appointments despite Sir Ken's opposition to the candidates, whom he feels are not heavyweight enough.

Support for the veteran supermarkets chief is fading in the City, where institutional shareholders have seen as much as £2bn wiped from Morrisons' market value since it bought Safeway in a £3bn-plus deal 18 months ago.

There is also growing feeling that Sir Ken may have to be shunted to the sidelines, although this is something he would resist fiercely. A number of leading institutions are understood to have offered their support to Jones in his battle with 74-year-old Sir Ken. And, contrary to some reports, Jones has no intention of stepping down until he completes the task of bringing new blood to the board.

Candidates include Nigel Robertson, a former senior Marks & Spencer executive who founded Waitrose's grocery delivery business Ocado, and Susan Murray, chief executive of the Advertising Standards Authority and former chief executive of Littlewoods Stores.