Theresa May carries on Labour's business pay crackdown

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She has repeatedly denied the focus is “anti-business” and aides argue that only with improvements can the country’s “strong reputation” for corporate governance be maintained. 

However the scale of similarity between Mrs May’s proposals, the details of which have only today been revealed, and Mr Miliband’s old policies is striking. 

Labour’s 2015 election manifesto, derided as anti-business by the Tories, promised better worker input by “requiring employee representation on remuneration committees”. 

Mrs May’s proposals will “consider whether employee representatives should have an advisory role on remuneration committees". 

Mr Miliband triggered a row with big business when in 2011 he called for companies to publish the ratio between the pay of their highest and average earners. 

“It isn’t for government to set maximum ratios but we do need change to encourage the responsibility we need,” he said. Explicit mention of the policy was dropped from the manifesto after the backlash. 

Mrs May wants to “require companies to publish pay ratios that show the difference in earning between the CEO and average employee”. 

The similarities could create tensions with Tory MPs who derided Mr Miliband’s “anti-business” agenda before the last election and tend to oppose government intervention in failing markets. 

The Prime Minister's announcements are also likely to reignite a row with business leaders, some of whom went public this week with concerns over the reforms. 

Andy Haldane, the Bank of England’s chief economist, was among corporate figures who rejected Mrs May’s proposals for binding shareholder votes on pay and the publication of salary ratios. 

An interim report led by the Big Innovation Centre, an independent think-tank, warned publishing pay gaps could create misleading comparisons. 

Defending the proposals, a Governemnt source said: “Businesses are a pillar of our society, creating employment opportunities and contributing significantly to funding our country’s public services

“The UK has led the world in corporate governance, but our strong reputation can only be maintained if government and business regularly reviews and upgrades our governance.

“Good governance helps companies take better decisions, for their own long-term benefit and the economy overall - ensuring public trust in British business and making sure the UK is the best place in the world to do business.”

Mrs May’s predecessor, David Cameron, did reform rules around executive pay during his premiership with support from his Coalition partners the Liberal Democrats. 

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