William Hill faces shareholder showdown over CEO's £1.2m 'gift' The Association of British Insurers (ABI), whose members control about 15pc of the stock market, has issued an "amber top" warning on the bookmarker's remuneration report ahead of its annual general meeting on Tuesday. Investors are concerned about a "retention" bonus in shares awarded to Mr Topping, who is also chairman of the Scottish Premier League, last year to ensure he stayed with the company until at least the end of December 2013. Abigail Herron, corporate governance manager at The Co-operative Asset Management, said the retention payment effectively amounted to a "gift on a plate" as it was not dependent on any performance criteria or targets. William Hill suffered a rebellion at its AGM last year over a 56pc increase in Mr Topping's compensation package to £1.6m. About 38pc of shareholders failed to back the company's 2010 remuneration report. A spokesman for the bookmaker said: "Ralph has been instrumental in reviving the fortunes of William Hill. The business has performed well against its financial and non-financial targets with the share price rising 18 per cent last year and 35 per cent so far this year. Mr Topping, who became chief executive of William Hill in 2008, is renown for his colourful blog outbursts. The bookmaker grew revenue 6pc to £1.1bn last year, helped by a particular strong performance from its internet business. Pre-tax profit dipped 3pc to £187.4m following a £47m write-off associated with a restructuring of the William Hill's telephone business.