Albert Manifold, the ousted chairman of BP, has denied ‘lies’ surrounding his conduct after being removed from the role less than a year after his appointment, according to BBC. Manifold, who served as chairman for under a year, said no-one should be ‘allowed to hide behind anonymity’ when commenting on his time at the energy giant.

Manifold Responds to Allegations

Manifold issued a statement in response to reports about his conduct after BP’s board removed him with immediate effect on Tuesday. In his statement, he stated that no one had raised any issue about his conduct or his relationship with colleagues during his tenure.

In response to his statement, a BP spokesperson said: ‘We note the comments of our former chair. We stand by the statement we have made. We have a duty of care to all our employees, particularly those impacted by his behaviour.’

Concerns About Governance

Manifold was removed from his post over concerns including ‘bullying’ and ‘overbearing’ behaviour by him, the BBC understands. BP declined to comment on whether bullying behaviour was part of the reason for his immediate dismissal. The board was unanimous in its decision.

On Thursday, Manifold said he accepted members of the board had decided he would no longer be chairman, but added that during his time in the role, issues regarding his conduct or relationship with colleagues were never raised. ‘In my 40-year working career, I have never once had accusations made against me such as those made in recent days. I dispute entirely this characterisation of my conduct,’ he said.

Manifold shared in his statement that his priorities as the company’s chairman, particularly shareholder interests, ‘were not always shared by everyone.’ ‘Where I saw unnecessary or excessive expenditure, I called it out,’ he added.

Mr Manifold added: ‘I had no interest in taking private aviation nor in availing myself of corporate tickets for sports events. I made my own coffee, bought my lunch in the local cafe.’

Boardroom Disagreements and Governance Issues

On Tuesday, senior independent director Amanda Blanc said the board had been ‘surprised and disappointed to learn of governance oversight and conduct issues it deems unacceptable and has taken decisive action.’ Manifold joined the company last September and was appointed chair the following month.

At the time of his appointment, BP said Manifold had ‘a strong track record of strategic leadership and operational delivery.’ Commenting on his time as chairman, Manifold said that in his determination to ‘drive change on costs, performance, the balance sheet and shareholder communications,’ it was possible he pushed hard and challenged people directly.

‘But there is a considerable distance between driving an organisation with urgency and the characterisation of my conduct that is now being put about,’ he said. Manifold’s departure comes after last month’s annual general meeting (AGM) in which nearly a fifth of BP shareholders voted against his election because of concerns over governance.

The boardroom turmoil at BP deepened after its ousted chair, Albert Manifold, claimed allegations about his conduct were ‘lies.’ In a new and lengthy statement, Manifold disputed reports about his conduct, saying: ‘At no point in my tenure as chairman of BP has anyone raised with me any issue about my conduct or my relationship with my colleagues.’

He also described media reports that he wanted to exert control of the FTSE 100 company like an executive chair as ‘nonsense.’ Manifold said he had ‘many other commitments’ and had only spent 13 days in BP’s London office so far this year.

BP announced Manifold’s departure with immediate effect on Tuesday after less than a year in the role, expressing serious concerns about his governance standards, oversight and conduct. Media reports, citing anonymous sources at the company, described his behaviour with different colleagues across the company as aggressive.

On Thursday, Manifold challenged those reports, saying: ‘What I do not accept is that lies can be told about me, nor that anyone should be allowed to hide behind anonymity when commenting on my time at BP.’ Manifold was appointed chair in October 2025, having previously served more than a decade as the chief executive of the Irish building materials company CRH.

He was tasked at BP with overseeing the continued change in the oil company’s strategy, to refocus on fossil fuel extraction and ditch renewable energy investments after BP abandoned its attempt to reinvent itself as a net zero energy company. Manifold conceded he may have ‘pushed hard and challenged people directly’ amid his ‘determination to drive change on costs, performance, the balance sheet and shareholder communications.’

However, he disputed reports from the company about his behaviour, adding: ‘There is a considerable distance between driving an organisation with urgency and the characterisation of my conduct that is now being put about.’ He said such ‘accusations’ had not been previously made about his behaviour during his 40-year career. He added that he ‘called out … unnecessary or excessive expenditure’ but felt not everyone shared his priorities.

Manifold said he turned down many of the benefits traditionally enjoyed by top executives, which he called a ‘culture of entitlement,’ including chauffeur-driven cars, being flown by private jet or taking advantage of corporate hospitality. ‘I had no interest in having a dedicated chauffeur-driven limousine at my beck and call on the occasions that I was in London,’ he said. ‘I, like most people, walked, took taxis, trains, etc. I had no interest in taking private aviation nor in availing myself of corporate tickets for sports events. I made my own coffee, bought my lunch in the local cafe. I sat in a small office, eschewing the grand corner-office privilege of previous chairmen.’

He said he did this to ‘set an example’ at the time the company was cutting costs and slashing jobs. Manifold said he believed BP had a ‘great future’ and