THE news of the departure of the Chief Executive, Simon Birch from Swindon Council raises serious questions about the excessive remuneration paid to its management and the value for money which they give to the taxpayer.

Mr Birch was appointed as director of Environmental Services in August 2001, on a salary of £77,000. Just 18 months later in March 2003 he was promoted to the post of chief executive with a pay rise of 75 per cent giving him a salary of £135,000. It made him the highest paid public servant in the South West.

We are now told that Mr Birch is going to resign after just two years service in his current post and that it is going to cost the council nearly £150,000 with £100,000 of that sum coming from the early release of his pension.

Presumably he is now going to take early retirement on a nice fat final salary pension which will be based on his last year's salary from the borough council.

Swindon is a failing council and Mr Birch has done little to improve its appalling performance ratings. During the last two years services have been so bad that the council has had to appoint managerial experts from another Local Authority to help implement improvements.

I believe that the council needs to have a complete review of all of its managerial posts and methods of remuneration.

Salaries should be based on performance and pensions paid at public expense should not be paid until employees reach the proper retirement age of 65.

K KANE

Ellingdon Road, Wroughton