Bonus for ex-chief despite dire LPA backlog
THE head of a government quango responsible for leaving hundreds of thousands of vulnerable and elderly people in a financial black hole was paid up to £20,000 as a performance bonus.
Nick Goodwin, who quit as chief executive of the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG), received an extra payment of between £15,000 and £20,000, according to the agency’s new accounts. The bonus is equivalent to 15 to 20 per cent on top of his basic salary of £100,000.
With pension benefits on top, his total salary package was worth up to £150,000 a year.
Mr Goodwin stepped down as head of the OPG in March this year to take up a new job as chief executive of the courts service.
Stuart Howard, his interim replacement, who took over in March, also received a bonus of up to £5,000. A new head of the body – known as the Public Guardian – takes over in the autumn.
But during Mr Goodwin’s time as OPG boss, the government agency saw waiting times to process lasting powers of attorney (LPA) rocket from 40 days to 140 days. An estimated third of a million applications remain pending.
On its website the OPG admits: “Our services are currently experiencing delays, and we apologise for any inconvenience this may cause. Please allow up to 20 weeks from receipt of your LPA for your application to be processed.”
Its answerphone message, although now changed, had explained that delays were due in part to staff working from home even after the Government had lifted all Covid restrictions.
In the annual report, the OPG admits that its service has suffered delays caused by staff sickness and shortages. It says that applications for LPAS had reached 4,000 a day. With delays of 20 weeks to even process applications, that would suggest more than half a million applications could be stuck in the system at any one time.
In the report, the OPG states: “The year has not been without its challenges … Towards the end of the year, numbers of LPA applications reached record levels, at over 4,000 a day. We’ve subsequently seen a build-up of LPAS needing to be processed. Customers have had to wait much longer than we would like for these important documents to be registered.”
Lawyers have warned that the OPG is no longer “fit for purpose” as a consequence of the backlog.
An investigation by The Daily Telegraph disclosed how families had been left unable to pay care home fees and other bills while they waited for control of a loved ones financial affairs.
Powers of attorney give relatives access to bank accounts and allow the sale of property and other assets to go ahead.
A Ministry of Justice spokesman said: “This payment is in line with Cabinet Office guidelines and recognises that he took on extra responsibilities while also overseeing significant reforms that helped the OPG deliver its services despite the unprecedented challenges of the pandemic. That work means the number of LPAS registered each month is now back to pre-pandemic levels.”