Giving shareholders a vote on the pay of company directors in the UK has been a resounding success, according to new research by investor group Pirc, suggesting the US would benefit from the introduction of similar rules being pushed by President Barack Obama’s government.

The introduction of the so-called "say on pay" rule in the UK six years ago has led to a higher proportion of executive pay packages at companies being performance-related, according to research from Pirc, a corporate governance advisory firm, and Railpen Investments, which manages the assets of the £16bn (€17.6bn) Railways Pension Scheme.