Published: 28/02/2002, Volume II2, No. 5794 Page 4

A Northern Ireland trust chair has been forced to resign over levels of executive pay.

Causeway Health and Social Services trust chair Margaret Craig was asked to resign by health minister Bairbre de Brun, after it emerged that the trust made performance pay awards ahead of departmental guidance.

But the trust insists that it took legal and professional advice before payments were agreed and says board members are 'deeply shocked' by the minister's decision to force Mrs Craig's resignation.

Over the past three years, a series of damning stories on the level of pay increases for executive members of trust boards have been the focus of local media attention.

Last spring, all trusts were instructed not to make assessments on pay awards until guidelines - which came out from the Department of Health and Social Services last October - were issued.

But Causeway trust made its performance pay assessments for 2000-01 ahead of that, and gave its executives higher awards than those recommended when the guidance came out.

Ms de Brun said the trust had 'disregarded'the letter sent to all trusts instructing them to defer assessment.

She said: 'The level of awards they have made to their senior executives for 200001, payable in 2001-02, averaged 4.15 per cent, and included awards of 5 per cent and 7 per cent.

'When added to the proposed salary review figure of 2 per cent, this would have meant overall pay awards of up to 9 per cent. This threatens once again to undermine public confidence and is unacceptable.

'I have therefore had no alternative but to seek the resignation of the chair of Causeway trust'.

In a statement, the trust said the awards related to senior executives who had met 'stringently externally advised performance targets' during the financial year 2000/01.

'Causeway trust took legal and professional advice and the process followed was in keeping with recent case law surrounding non-payment of performance- related pay and ensured that the trust was not vulnerable to litigation by its senior executives.The decision on pay awards had been ratified by the entire trust board.'

And the trust stressed: 'Mrs Craig has at all times enjoyed the total confidence of the trust board in all trust business, including meeting financial targets and service delivery responsibilities'.

At the same time, the minister announced this year's guidance review figure for senior Northern Ireland health and social services executives for 2001-02.

Awards will be made of 2 per cent to staff on performance pay schemes, and 3.5 per cent to those on flat-rate salaries.However, because of the awards made in Causeway trust, a figure of 1per cent will apply to it.