Bring out the pitchforks! News that the pay of chief executives at FTSE 100 companies rose twice as much in the past year as that of shop-floor workers is bound to be seized on by critics as further evidence of a broken remuneration system. But some perspective is required.

First, while median-base pay of FTSE CEOs rose 7.4 per cent last year, bonuses fell 29 per cent. The result, according to Incomes Data Services, was a 1.5 per cent overall drop in cash compensation. By comparison, ordinary Britons’ primary incomes fell by much the same, while disposable income actually rose by 2 per cent thanks to lower taxes and interest rates.