When Adrian Orr was appointed Governor – in late 2017, taking up the job in March last year –  we were given to understand that

Orr’s salary at the central bank would be “in the range of the current governor” [that was reported as a quote from the Minister] “, whose most recent salary has been reported to be around $660,000 a year”.

At the time there was an (unlawfully appointed) “acting Governor” holding office, but it had been announced that he was being paid the same as the previous (lawful) Governor.   The most recent substantive Governor, Graeme Wheeler, had left office a couple of months earlier.

Wheeler’s last full financial year as Governor was the year to June 2017.  In that year, the highest paid person at the Bank is reported (Annual Report) to have received between $850-$860K that year, with a note disclosing that

The highest remuneration band includes a payment of $101,000 for accrued annual leave, which was paid in cash rather than taking annual leave.

In other words, his final year salary looks to have been around $750-$760K per annum.   As I pointed out in this post, it looks as though Wheeler had had perhaps a $90000 payrise that year (the case for which was distinctly questionable, but that is another post).

What of Orr?  The Reserve Bank’s Annual Report was released today.  Orr was in office for the full year, and there are no footnotes suggesting extraordinary payments (eg see above), and the relevant table suggests that the highest paid person at the Bank received $820-$830K last year.

Perhaps among the elites where Grant Robertson moves an additional $70000 a year is a mere bagatelle and pardonably covered by “within the range” of the previous Governor. One suspects ordinary voters might be more sceptical.   (And even if the Minister and the Board thought the Governor’s first year performance was superlative, the overwhelming bulk of the annual payment disclosed today has to relate to the rate at which Orr was first appointed –  and it is hard to believe the Minister would be giving the Governor a big rise when he is telling listed companies he is a shareholder in not to raise directors’ fees at all.)

In truth, high as the Governor’s pay is relative to other government agency CEOs, I would have no real objection to paying that amount for a really top-notch person. It is, after all, a job of great (barely trammelled) power and responsibility.   I strongly object to paying that amount of money for someone who just makes stuff up, tramples across the boundaries of his role, and who shows little no in-depth command of the issues and material he is responsible for.   You might have thought my comments on his speech last week were fairly critical, but my assessment was pretty moderate by the standards of comments I’ve had on it from other knowledgeable people (“woeful”) was the latest one I heard this morning –  and that is before getting started on his really rather appallingly-bad (but well off reservation) second speech last week.

But, as ever, not a murmur of concern is heard from the Bank’s Board or the Minister.  For the latter, it must be convenient that the Governor spins so often, perhaps to keep spirits up.    That might be a job for the Minister and the Prime Minister.  It most certainly isn’t the role of the Governor, and his stewardship to date is diminishing his own standing and that of the institution he leads.  With a Secretary to the Treasury who knows nothing about New Zealand (but at least has an excuse for not doing so) and a Governor of the Reserve Bank who, whatever he really knows, just makes stuff up, the public are very poorly served by our key economic institutions.   Responsibility for that rests with the Minister of Finance.