Pickles vetoes Audit Commission chief executive's pay package and issues warning to councils on pay restraint

The Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, Eric Pickles, has refused the Audit Commission's request to offer a pay package of £239,800 for its vacant chief executive role and warned councils to show restraint when making pay awards to chief executives.

The Audit Commission claimed that the pay award was necessary for it to attract high calibre recruits for the position, which has been vacant since the former chief executive, Steve Bundred, left the organisation in March.

However, using new powers announced by the coalition government that require centrally-funded pay packages to be approved by the relevant Secretary-of-State, Pickles refused to sanction the pay award and called on councillors to exercise similar circumspection when considering senior local authority salaries, pensions and bonuses.

Pickles said: “The spiralling level of pay and perks for town hall bosses stops here. By blocking this massive salary for the Audit Commission, I want to send a signal to councils across the country that they too can stop paying ridiculous sums to chief executives. Councillors should have the confidence to set sensible salaries that the public deem fit and proper.”

The future role of the Audit Commission is in considrable doubt following the abolition of the Comprehensive Area Assessment (CAA) regime which it administered. Before the election, the Conservative Party was reported to have “no confidence” in the Audit Commission, following its payments to a PR firm to try to water down the Tories' policy of abolishing the CAA process.