Now ex-CBI boss John Allan loses his job at Barratt

Former CBI boss John Allan has lost his second job in less than a week following allegations of inappropriate behaviour towards women – costing him over £1million in annual earnings.

Barratt Developments said he will step down as chairman at the end of June – around two months earlier than planned. 

The housebuilder said Allan would depart ‘to prevent the ongoing impact of the allegations against [him] from becoming disruptive to the company’.

Tesco said on Friday that Allan would relinquish his role as its chairman next month.

Allegations: Property giant Barratt Developments said John Allan (pictured) will step down as chairman at the end of June – some two months earlier than planned

The departures will see the City grandee lose over £1m in earnings a year. Allan was paid £345,000 by Barratt and £713,000 by Tesco.

It comes amid a wider scandal engulfing the CBI about its culture and treatment of female staff – including an alleged rape and drug abuse. 

Tony Danker was sacked as director general last month and the lobby group is battling for survival.

Allan was president of the CBI between 2018 and 2020 and vice-president until 2021.

He has been accused of touching the bottoms of two women and making inappropriate remarks to two others.

Allan denies three of the allegations and has ‘unreservedly’ apologised for a fourth where he told a female CBI employee that a dress ‘suited her figure’. 

But a Barratt spokesman said the 74-year-old was asked to leave ‘at the request of the board’. 

No complaints were made against Allan during his nine years at Barratt.

He blamed ‘utterly baseless allegations’ against him for his exit from Tesco and added: ‘There is no evidence of any wrongdoing at that time or at any stage of my chairmanship at Tesco and I remain determined to prove my innocence.’