Australian developer Multiplex was in the spotlight again this week as it emerged that chief executive Andrew Roberts received a 47% pay rise in the last financial year, despite the firm’s poor financial performance.

Roberts received a salary of almost A$1.55m (£660,000), despite the fact that he was not paid a bonus because of the poor results.

His basic salary was A$985,000, up from the A$584,000 he received last year. His salary was supplemented by A$550,647 of unspecified “non-monetary benefits”.

A spokesperson for the company said this referred to travel and accommodation costs linked to Roberts’ relocation from Australia to the UK. He said the package was a one-off and would not be repeated next year.

John Roberts, the company’s founder, and Andrew’s father, earned A$92,525.

Multiplex’s shares were hit hard in June when the company announced that the national stadium at Wembley, north-west London, where it is contractor, was going to make a loss of at least £48m. The Roberts family itself has committed to finding £20m of the shortfall.

Allan McDonald, who replaced John Roberts as chairman in May, said that despite the problems at Wembley the outlook for the business was good. The company has said it was looking to appoint an independent non-executive director with experience of the UK market.