Written question asked by Norman Baker (Liberal Democrat) on Tuesday, 14 September 2004, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 14 October 2004. It was answered by Alun Michael (Labour) on Thursday, 14 October 2004 on behalf of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

Dept for Environment Food and Rural Affairs

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what factors underlay the decision to set the salary for the Chief Executive of the Rural Payments Agency at its present level.

Answer: Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what factors underlay the decision to set the salary for the Chief Executive of the Rural Payments Agency at its present level. [189618] Alun Michael: The Rural Payments Agency brought together functions from the former Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food's regional centres and the former Intervention Board. The purpose was to streamline, modernise and reduce the costs of administering Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) schemes, while delivering a high-quality service to farmers and traders. This new agency required a leader with a successful track record of delivering radical change in a substantial delivery organisation and it demanded someone who could sustain a high level of performance. The Chief Executive post was therefore advertised in 2000 as an Open Competition. Since then there has been the additional challenge of delivering successful implementation of CAP reform. The external market and the high expectations of the post holder were factors in determining the salary. The salaries of chief executives are reported to Parliament in the usual way.

Secondary information