PRESSURE is mounting on city leaders to drop their veil of secrecy and reveal a former chief executive’s pay-off.

Communities Secretary Eric Pickles has hit out at councils trying to sneak through staff exit handouts “away from the eyes of the taxpayer”.

His criticism comes follows former Newcastle Council chief executive Barry Rowland being forced out of the job after a struggle for control between him and the Labour council’s leader, Nick Forbes was revealed in a report.

The authority, which has refused to reveal the details of the severance package, insisted all those involved, including Mr Rowland, sign a strict confidentiality clause preventing them from telling taxpayers how much of their money was used.

Mr Rowland has since found work as corporate director of local services at Northumberland County Council, while Newcastle has hired Pat Ritchie as its new chief executive.

Under new rules set to be introduced, severance pay-offs will have to be democratically approved, with councillors having their say in public.

As councils prepare to set their next pay levels, Mr Pickles has written to local authority leaders making clear it is time for openness and pay restraint.

“For too long, local government has made severance pay arrangements away from the eyes of those who get left with the bill, the taxpayer,” the Communities Secretary said. “Town hall chief executives are well paid, so if they are not up to the job councils need to part ways with them fairly.

“Quietly agreeing to thousands in under-the- counter parachute pay-offs for departing bureaucrats is not the way to achieve this.

“Councils have a responsibility to the public and transparency is at the heart of that. By shining a light on excessive public pay and introducing new democratic checks and balances to senior salaries, we are helping councils improve accountability in local government.”

Former Newcastle City Council leader David Faulkner said the authority appeared to be heading in the right direction already by reducing pay for the current chief executive.

“I welcome the concept of decisions to dismiss chief executives and other very senior people having to be explained to full councils and approved by them,” he said.

“Barry Rowland was a well-respected and high- achieving chief executive, but he obviously wasn’t the ‘yes’ man that Nick Forbes was looking for.

“What I can say is that the paper given to us about his dismissal gave no specific reason why and when we asked the question, it was not answered.”

Last night, a council spokesman said: “The information which was requested was the subject of a compromise agreement which contained confidentiality provisions and there was therefore an expectation that the information would remain private at this time.

“The council’s pay policy for all staff is publicly available.” Mr Pickles is also going to introduce changes to dismissal and disciplinary proceedings.

Councils will no longer be required to appoint an independent investigator to review misconduct by senior officers before they can be dismissed.

Last November, the Communities Secretary set out how this “bizarre bureaucratic ritual” was substantially increasing the cost of parachute pay-offs for local authorities.

In future, if council leaders decide to dismiss a chief executive deemed to be ineffective, they will be required to get support for a resolution from the full council.