2012 bosses pick up £1.7m bonuses despite cost rises

Best paid: David Higgins

5 April 2012

Olympics chiefs came under fire today for paying themselves "staggering" bonuses of £1.7 million in the past year.

Accounts filed by the Olympic Delivery Authority showed that seven out of the eight senior managers enjoyed packages worth more than £250,000 per year.

Among the best paid were chief executive David Higgins, whose remuneration including bonus was £624,000; director of finance and corporate services Dennis Hone, who received a package worth £358,000; and director of construction Howard Shiplee, who received £357,000.

Even the lowest paid director, Godric Smith, received a salary of £186,000 - roughly the same as the Prime Minister. Communications director Mr Smith is on a total package of £243,000.

The figures emerged in a difficult year for the ODA which has been criticised for the rising cost of venues, notably the £303 million aquatics centre and the £500million main stadium.

Accounts showed that the ODA paid £1.69 million in bonuses from a total wage bill of £15million. The ODA also paid £87.6 million to its "delivery partner" CLM which runs the building programme on the £9.3billion Olympic Park project. CLM itself received a bonus, or "enhanced profit payments" of £16.1million.

The ODA said the payment was justified because CLM - which employs engineering, architecture and design experts - had helped to keep the project on track including ensuring that work on the stadium and pool complex started ahead of time. However Matthew Elliott, chief executive of the TaxPayers' Alliance, attacked the bonuses paid to Games chiefs.

He said: "These are staggering bonuses given the financial problems the ODA is suffering. Everyone wants 2012 to be a great success, but the budget overruns and serious questions about the legacy threaten a big hangover once the party is over.

"We shouldn't be paying performance-related bonuses when the project is missing budget target after budget target."

Last year the ODA came under fire when it published directors' salaries in its annual accounts that were a fraction of the total figure. It later emerged that senior executives were being paid up to £110,000 more than the published figures.

Hugh Robertson, shadow Olympics minister, said: "Given that CLM has already cost over a third of the total cost of constructing the aquatics centre, it is difficult to understand how they can justify an extra performance payment of £16million at a time when the overall budget is rising so dramatically.

"I am also constantly told that there is considerable duplication between the ODA, CLM and the Government Olympic Executive - all of whom have a role overseeing delivery."

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