Tuesday 07 May 2019 11:18 am | Updated: Wednesday 05 June 2019 9:11 am

Kier finance boss steps down after year of money worries for construction firm

Shares in embattled construction outsourcer Kier Group fell sharply this morning after it announced its finance boss will quit later this year.

Bev Dew, who earlier this year stayed in post amid the ousting of chief executive Haydn Mursell by a rebel shareholder group, is to follow his former boss out of the company by the end of September. Dew will leave the firm after it delivers its full-year results for the year ending 30 June.

Chairman Philip Cox said: “Bev has been our finance director for over four years and I would like to thank him for his contribution over this time. Bev remains firmly committed to the company and will be working with the board to deliver the 2019 results.”

Drew has overseen Kier lurching from one crisis to another in the last 12 months, after mounting debt levels caused it to become the most shorted stock on the London Stock Exchange late last year.

Then, after just 38 per cent of shareholders took up an issuance of new stock designed to raise £264m, lead shareholder Neil Woodford spearheaded a move which saw former boss Haydn Mursell removed from his post in January.

Kier shares fell another 3.7 per cent today, leaving its stock valued at just 349.6p, nearly 70 per cent down on its yearly high of 1109.5p.

Britain’s construction firms have come under pressure since the collapse of Carillion at the start of 2018, which forced regulators to tighten rules for private companies doing public services. In March, another major public service provider Interserve fell into the hands of its creditors, further highlighting the issues faced by the sector.

Kier has contracts for major construction projects including London's Crossrail, but had £180.5m of debt at the end of last year, down from £624m when it announced the rights issue last year.