Pre-tax profits at the group, which owns the Ask and Zizzi pizza chains, in the year to 29 December rose 23 per cent to £16.7m, while sales climbed21 per cent to £95.8m.. Shire Pharmaceuticals finally appointed a chief executive yesterday, five months after the controversial ousting of Rolf Stahel, who had turned the drug maker into a FTSE 100 stalwart in almost a decade at the helm. He sidestepped issues over the geographical focus of the company and its acquisition strategy, which was believed to underlie the boardroom row that led to Mr Stahel’s removal. He will move to the UK but keep on his three homes in the US.He said: “All companies need to consider meaningful opportunities in the major global markets, which are Europe and the US, and there needs to be a balance of those.” Mr Emmens left Merck KgaA a month ago, having been president of its global prescription pharmaceuticals division.

He began his career at another Merck, the US giant Merck & Co, and ran the joint venture which included Prilosec, the novel ulcer drug that became the biggest selling medicine in the world.Mr Emmens will be judged on his ability to bring off successful acquisitions to reduce Shire’s dependence on its most successful drug, a treatment for hyperactive children, Adderall. The drug still accounts for more than 40 per cent of the company’s sales.The company’s shares have languished since the respected Mr Stahel was ousted. He had agreed to stay on in a caretaker capacity and will leave at the end of next week. To date, Mr Stahel, 58, has refused offers to meet headhunters and said yesterday that he would take time out to “clear my mind, take the opportunity to think about redirecting my life”.However, he said he was unlikely to retire. “I think it is fair to bet that I won’t spend the rest of my time yodelling in the Alps. For now, though, and for the first time in my professional life, I have time to spend on my wife and myself.”.

Shares in Smiths, the aerospace to industrial seals group, fell by 12 per cent yesterday after the company reported an unexpected drop in profits in its medical equipment division. In the last 12 months it has transferred 2,000 jobs in its sealings, industrial and medical divisions to Mexico and Central America where labour costs are $10 (£6.20) a day compared with $75 to $90 in the north-east of the US.Currency movements and increased R&D costs reduced profits by £20m. Leaving these aside, operating profits for the six months to the end of January came in at £180m compared with £182m. Aerospace, which accounts for 45 per cent of total sales, saw operating profits rise from £70m to £75m but medical profits fell from £43m to £37m.Mr Butler-Wheelhouse said there were huge opportunities for Smiths’ detection systems division which specialises in explosives and metal detection as the US airline industry moved towards full screening of hold baggage.