Mr Don Tidey, who was chairman and chief executive of Quinnsworth and Crazy Prices when it was owned by Associated British Foods (ABF), received a special retirement bonus of £2 million from his employer. Mr Tidey is now chairman of Tesco's Irish operations. Tesco took over Quinnsworth in a £641 million deal earlier this year.
The payment was disclosed in the ABF annual report. It was made "in recognition of his exceptional performance during his employment, enabling the group to manage favourably its investment in Power Supermarkets Limited of Ireland".
Mr Tidey (62) received the bonus payment shortly before he retired from the ABF board in June. He is receiving an annual pension starting at £144,000 in the first year of his retirement.
As head of ABF's subsidiary, Power Supermarkets, Mr Tidey was responsible for overseeing its sale to Tesco yielding a £420 million investment gain for ABF.
In 1983, Mr Tidey survived an IRA kidnapping. He was freed after 24 days, following a gun battle during which a soldier and a trainee garda were killed.
