My father, Peter Regnier, who has died aged 77 following a fall, was one of few people to have served on both the board of a plc and a trade union council.
He was finance director of British Leyland (and then of Austin Rover Group, following restructuring of the company) from 1979 until his removal seven years later, an event that made the headlines. The car manufacturer was in effect state-owned, having been bailed out by the UK taxpayer several times. Tensions between government and executives reached a head in 1986 when the then prime minister, Margaret Thatcher, appointed a new chairman; several senior directors, including Peter, were sacked.
