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The £1m governor: The cost of Carney in his first year

Your Money
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Your Money
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05/12/2014

Mark Carney’s move from Canada to London cost the Bank of England nearly £200,000 – which, in addition to his £870,00 salary – makes him Britain’s first £1m governor.

The cost of relocating the former Goldman Sachs banker and his family – including flights, temporary accommodation, and shipping costs – was £102,816.

The Bank also forked out £95,846 in tax related to the cost of the move, taking the total to £198,662, according to the central bank’s annual report published yesterday, the Daily Mail reports.

Mr Carney’s (pictured) relocation package – on top of annual earnings of £874,000 including a £250,000 housing allowance – takes the total for his first year in charge to more than £1m.

It far outstrips the £309,297 his predecessor Lord King earned.

Revelations about Mr Carney’s package come weeks after he warned that huge rewards for ‘superstar’ bankers are causing inequality around the world.

He said globalisation had resulted in huge earnings which were ‘amplifying the rewards of the superstar’.

And in January, the Bank of England said it was planning to cut up to 100 jobs following a ‘value for money’ review.

Mr Carney was hand-picked for the role by George Osborne after helping the Canadian economy recover faster from the downturn than any other developed major nation.

He beat some of Britain’s leading executives to the job despite insisting he will only serve five years – rather than eight, to reduce disruption to his children.

It was his track record that prompted Mr Osborne to overlook favourites including Bank veteran Paul Tucker and Adair Turner, the former chairman of the City watchdog.

Figures show Mr Osborne’s decision cost the Bank £102,816 to relocating the superstar banker and his family to London, while also paying a tax liability of £95,846.

The report today said: ‘It is the Bank’s policy to relocate those appointed to senior positions as necessary, and to incur the costs of doing so.

‘In line with this policy, the Bank relocated Mr Carney and his family from Ottawa to London. Procurement decisions in that process were taken by the Bank.’

The Bank said it decided Mr Carney’s salary through a remuneration committee, which takes account of salaries available elsewhere and how this ‘might affect the availability of good candidates’.

Its accommodation allowance for Mr Carney reflects ‘the additional cost of living in London rather than in Ottawa’.