Orkney Islands Council has spent close to £50,000 on travel and accommodation costs for an “interim” chief executive who has now been in the post for two years.
The expenses bill for John Mundell includes more than £23,000 on journeys to and from his “business address” on the mainland of Scotland in 2019/20 and 2020/21.
The local authority has confirmed that some of the travel was made during periods of lockdown restrictions, but it insisted he was “entitled” to make the trips as a key worker.
Almost £22,000 was also spent on accommodation on Orkney for Mr Mundell in the same period, as well as £3,700 on “subsistence”.
He was only expected to be in the post for four to six months when he was appointed to temporarily replace Alistair Buchan in the top job in June 2019.
However, the authority has failed to find a permanent successor to take on the £110,000 role after two advertising rounds.
It is now due to embark on a third attempt to find a new chief executive.
Figures released to us under freedom of information (FOI) laws show that the total cost to the local authority of Mr Mundell’s expenses for 2020/21 alone was £21,560.
This included £6,900 for travel to his business address, down from £16,265 in 2019/20.
A further £13,500 was spent on accommodation on Orkney last year, which represented an increase on the £8,200 incurred the year before.
The spending compares to zero expense claims made last year, during the pandemic, by the chief executives of councils covering Aberdeen City, Argyll and Bute, Dundee City, Highland, Moray, Perth and Kinross and Shetland Islands.
A total of £297.90 was claimed by Aberdeenshire Council’s chief executive, while the bill at Western Isles Council was £73.08, and at NHS Grampian it was £36.96.
Apart from Orkney Islands Council, the only other public sector organisation in northern Scotland to pay out more than a three-figure sum in chief executive expenses last year was NHS Orkney, according to FOI responses.
Its former chief executive designate, Iain Stewart, hit the headlines last year when he was criticised for travelling from Kirkwall to his Black Isle family home at weekends, as well as making a trip to Glasgow, during the lockdown period.
The total chief executive expenses bill for NHS Orkney in 2020/21 was £2,124.
Orkney Islands Council was asked if the £6,900 travel bill for last year included trips made during lockdown restrictions.
It said: “Yes the interim chief executive is a key worker and was entitled to travel in full compliance with the government’s rules, nevertheless he significantly restricted travel to and from his home for many weeks – on occasion in excess of 10 weeks at a time during the height of the pandemic.”
Yes the interim chief executive is a key worker and was entitled to travel in full compliance with the government’s rules, nevertheless he significantly restricted travel to and from his home for many weeks – on occasion in excess of 10 weeks at a time during the height of the pandemic.”
A spokeswoman said the cost of the arrangement with the interim chief executive was “fully reported and approved by the council every time the arrangement was considered for an extension”.
She added: “For many organisations, the effects of the pandemic have made this a difficult time to recruit staff.
“In our case, two recruitment processes for a permanent chief executive hasn’t resulted in an appointment being made so far.
“While keen to pursue this matter, the council has decided on reflection to delay the process for the time being.
“In due course, the council will decide when to re-advertise the post.”
Orkney MSP Liam McArthur MSP said: “It’s disappointing that despite going through a recruitment process twice OIC still does not have a permanent chief executive.
“This is not helpful in allowing long term decisions to be made at what has been a tremendously tough time for local authorities across Scotland.
“I hope steps can now be taken to understand why the process has been unsuccessful to date so that an appointment to this crucial role can be made as soon as possible.”
Jamie Halcro Johnston, Conservative MSP for the Highlands and Islands, said: “The role of chief executive is a key one for the delivery of vital services across the islands, and it is worrying that this post remains unfilled on a permanent basis.
“This has meant an increased financial burden on Orkney taxpayers, and this comes at a time when the Scottish Government is already demanding the council delivers more for less in the islands.
“Interim or temporary appointments – sometimes covering existing jobs at the same time – seem to have become more common in the islands in recent years.
“But the council needs to have the best people doing the job, and to have them in place on a permanent basis, so as to be able to provide a consistent and Orkney-focused approach.”