Katherine Bryan, the CEO of the Northern Ireland Water Service has left her post. Ms. Bryan who announced her resignation on the 1st May 2008 left her post as expected on the 31st May 2008. 

The revelation was made in the wake of discontent that NI Water made serious errors in the forecasting of future revenue and before the results of the soon to be reported enquiry into the matter. 

Ms. Bryan who last year received £180,000 including salary and bonus is perceived to be the first of many heads to roll. There is considerable anger among the public at the severance package Ms Bryan received which totals: £266,217.65, as they are left to foot the bill for errors the company she headed, made.

Editorial

Ms. Bryan leaves the Water Service a lot richer than we are going to be through the incompetence of the organisation she headed. 

We can not blame Ms Bryan for the introduction of the Water Charges, we must blame those politicians who mislead us or lied to us in order to secure our vote at the last election and we must suitably reward them at the next election. However, we can blame Ms. Bryan for the errors made by her department.

Does Ms. Bryan deserve this large payout, when some consider the incompetence of her department to be a sackable offence? That depends!

If Ms. Bryan has truly left public service and is not to regain public sector employment through the backdoor or the old boys network, then we should pay the severance package and wave goodbye. However, if as often happens the public have just paid several hundred thousand pound to wave goodbye only to have her resurface in another public department, then we along with others would dispute the necessity of such a payout.