It is two years since Eric Pickles was relieved of his job prodding chief executives about their salaries. In one of my last interviews with him when I ventured he'd had his ‘ups and downs' with SOLACE. He looked quizzical. ‘Ups?' he replied. ‘I don't remember any ups.'

Since then the subject has gone quiet. Google council chief executive salaries and you will find most of the coverage is a few years old. Even the Taxpayers' Allowance has become bored with the subject. The reason is very simple: in the past four years council chief executive salaries have either become static or actually gone down in real terms, usually when an incumbent leaves. A glance through recent issues of The MJ shows recent salaries on offer for chief executives include £170k for a met, between £105k-£130k for districts and £185k for a London borough.