THE chairman of North-based housing developer Persimmon is quitting after it emerged chief executive Jeff Fairburn is set to receive an “obscene” bonus of more than £100 million.

Nicholas Wrigley is to resign in recognition of his failure to cap the York company’s pay scheme, along with remuneration committee chairman Jonathan Davie.

The revelation that the company’s management could share a bonus package, believed to be around £500m has been greeted with widespread anger.

Announcing Mr Wrigley and Mr Davie’s departures, Persimmon admitted that the generous payout plan presided over by the duo “could have included a cap”.

The payouts depend on the company’s stock market performance, which has been significantly boosted by the government’s help to buy scheme.

York Central MP Rachael Maskell said money from that scheme should be helping communities.

She said: “Government intervention is needed to increase social housing, but the money should help the community.

“There are few winners out of this. There will be a lot of anger in a community like York where the price of a house is 9.5 times the average salary.”

York-born Lib Dem leader Vince Cable told The Guardian newspaper that the “scale of this bonus is obscene” and built on a “government subsidy”.

He added: “It is reminiscent of the worst excesses of corporate greed that helped to create the financial crisis, when short-termism was heavily incentivised and long-term planning ignored.

A spokesman for Persimmon said: “The company introduced a Long Term Incentive Plan in 2012 (2012 LTIP).

“The board believes that the introduction of the 2012 LTIP has been a significant factor in the company’s outstanding performance over this period, led by a strong and talented executive team.

“Nevertheless, Nicholas and Jonathan recognise that the 2012 LTIP could have included a cap.

“In recognition of this omission, they have therefore tendered their resignations.”

But Persimmon went on to say that since the award scheme was launched, the company has made substantial cash returns to shareholders at the same time as growing the business.