Breakfast briefing: Retail news on BHS, Sports Direct, Burberry and more

Minister warns BHS executives could face ban if guilty of criminal wrongdoing

Business minister Anna Soubry has pledged to serve justice if investigators find any evidence that the conduct of directors led to the collapse of BHS.

In a Commons statement, the MP warned that proof of criminal wrongdoing by senior management could prompt the Government to apply for executives to be banned from being company directors for up to 15 years.

Meanwhile, MPs have slammed former owner and Arcadia tycoon Sir Philip Green for the collapse of the retailer, accusing him of being an “unscrupulous chancer” and of overseeing “wealth extraction rather than wealth creation”.

Conservative MP David Davis said Green’s management of BHS “can be described as little else than asset stripping”, while Roger Mullin, the SNP Treasury spokesman, said “many will be thinking Green is little better than a corporate crook”, as he called on the government to clamp down on “unscrupulous chancers”.

Mike Ashley admits to problems with working practices at Derbyshire warehouse

Sports Direct’s tycoon Mike Ashley for the first time has acknowledged that there had been issues with the security and search procedures at the sports retailer’s main Derbyshire warehouse.

This comes ahead of his scheduled appearance in Parliament to answer questions about the working conditions at its Shirebrook premises.

Ashley has also revealed that group chief executive Dave Forsey will not be taking his four-year share bonus, worth as much as £4m.

"This has been a difficult year for the company,” he admitted in a letter to the retailer's 27,000 staff, a copy of which has been seen by The Telegraph, as he thanked them for their “hard work” during a “challenging time".

Burberry chief to miss out on annual bonus as he takes 75% pay cut

Burberry chief executive Christopher Bailey received a 75% cut in his last year’s pay after the luxury retailer endured a disappointing result for the full year.

Bailey received almost £1.9m in salary, pension and other benefits in 2015, down from a total of £7.51m the year before, according to the company’s annual report.

He would miss out on an annual bonus as he failed to meet the fashion brand’s profit target last year.

Burberry chairman Sir John Peace and chief financial officer Carol Fairweather will also not receive any bonuses. Peace and Fairweather took pay cuts of 59% and 47% respectively.

Warm weather lifts retail sales in May

Like-for-like sales rose 0.5% year on year in May, thanks to the warm weather.

Sales of household appliances, beauty products and toys increased last month, but shoppers were apprehensive to spend on bigger items such as furniture, perhaps linked to a slowdown in the housing market, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC).

Food sales grew 0.3% in total terms, recording their fastest growth since October.

“Clothing made a big comeback this month after suffering declines in April. This appears to be due to consumers waiting for just the right moment before embarking on their pre-summer spending,” said BRC chief executive Helen Dickinson.