FOI - Salary and expenses

Published •

Ref No.: 01 24
Request Type: FOI
Date Received: 26/02/24
Date Responded: 05/03/24
Category:  Salary and expenses

Request

  1. Details of the salary and rewards package paid to the Chief Executive and Directors of your organisation?
  2. Details of the amount paid to each in expenses over each of the last 5 years – please what these were paid for.
  3. Details of the amount collectively paid in by your organisation to the pension pots of these senior officers in each of the last five years.
  4. The pay ratio of the highest paid employee to the lowest paid employee of your organisation

Response

Many thanks for your request for information dated 26 February 2024, which asked for:

  1. Details of the salary and rewards package paid to the Chief Executive and Directors of your organisation?
  2. Details of the amount paid to each in expenses over each of the last 5 years – please what these were paid for.
  3. Details of the amount collectively paid in by your organisation to the pension pots of these senior officers in each of the last five years.
  4. The pay ratio of the highest paid employee to the lowest paid employee of your organisation

We have handled your request in terms of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA).  FOISA provides for a right of access to recorded information held by Scottish public authorities.

We disclose the following information to you in response to your request:

  1. Details of the salary and rewards package paid to the Chief Executive and Directors of your organisation?

The information requested within this part of your request is subject to an absolute exemption under Section 25 of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002, in that the information is otherwise reasonably accessible to you. The information you have requested is available from our Annual Report and Financial Statements, within the Remuneration Report section. You can find this on our website here.

  1. Details of the amount paid to each in expenses over each of the last 5 years – please what these were paid for.
Alan Sutherland; Chief Executive
Expenditure Financial year
2019-20 2020-21 2021-22 2022-23 2023-24 Grand total
Accommodation 29,276.03   940.36 379.29 991.72 31,587.40
Books and subscriptions   202.73     7.49 210.22
Flights 41,490.71   5,470.06 37,765.25 1,174.97 85,900.99
IT hardware   799.61       799.61
IT software     47.99 47.99   95.98
Other travel 12,367.20   140.96 2,140.93 190.86 14,839.95
Stationery   25.78 59.96     85.74
Subsistence -33.05     852.84 4.05 823.84
Sundries     30.00     30.00
Grand total 83,100.89 1,028.12 6,689.33 41,186.30 2,369.09 134,373.73
Ian Tait; Director
Expenditure category Financial year
2019-20 Grand total
Other travel 306.56 306.56
Subsistence 120.30 120.30
Grand total 426.86 426.86
  1. Details of the amount collectively paid in by your organisation to the pension pots of these senior officers in each of the last five years.

The information requested within this part of your request is subject to an absolute exemption under Section 25 of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002, in that the information is otherwise reasonably accessible to you. The information you have requested is available from our Annual Report and Financial Statements which you can find on our website here. 

Most of our employees are members of the Local Government Superannuation Scheme administered by Falkirk Council. This scheme is a defined benefit scheme. The Scheme advises WICS of the specific (minimum) rates for employer contributions each year. From 1 April 2021 to 31 March 2024, the employer’s contribution is 29.4%. For the three years previous to this the rate was 28.3%. The ex-Chief Executive, Alan Sutherland, left the pension scheme on 31 March 2017. Therefore, there was no cost incurred by WICS associated with the CEOs pension membership since that time.

  1. The pay ratio of the highest paid employee to the lowest paid employee of your organisation.

The information requested within this part of your request is subject to an absolute exemption under Section 25 of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002, in that the information is otherwise reasonably accessible to you. The information you have requested is available from our Annual Report and Financial Statements, within the Remuneration Report section. You can find this on our website here.

If you are unhappy with this response to your request, you may ask us to carry out a review by contacting us.  Your request for review should explain why you are dissatisfied and should be made within 40 working days of receipt of this response.  The review will be undertaken by staff not involved in the original process and we will reply within 20 working days of receipt.  

If you are not satisfied with the outcome of the review, you then have the right to appeal to the Scottish Information Commissioner (SIC) and thereafter to the Court of Session on a point of law only.  The SIC can be contacted using the details below:

Scottish Information Commissioner
Kinburn Castle
Doubledykes Road
St Andrews
Fife
KY16 9DS
Telephone: 01334 464610
http://www.itspublicknowledge.info
or for online appeals:
www.itspublicknowledge.info/Appeal

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