Bob Kiley Confesses to Doing Little Work for His I3,000 a Day
KEN LIVINGSTONE’s transport guru sparked outrage today after admitting he did little to earn his i3,200-a-day fees.
Bob Kiley, 72, also revealed he is an alcoholic but denied his drink problem was connected with him quitting as transport commissioner last year.
The Mayor, who retained him as a consultant, Full interview: Pages 89 insisted he was "worth every penny". Mr Kiley said of his deal, which will net the American i737,000: "If you ask me what I actually do to earn my consultancy, I’d have to tell you, in all honesty, ‘not much’. " He told the Evening Standard: "Do I offer the British taxpayer value for money? I’ll leave that for you to decide." Sources close to the Tory London Assembly group said Mr Livingstone and Mr Kiley would be summoned to explain themselves before the transport committee. Mr Kiley’s comments were branded "outrageous" by Chris Grayling, shadow transport secretary.
He said: "Paying him for doing nothing at all is clearly an absurd waste of money.
This suggests that the Mayor is not doing proper, long-term work for London’s transport needs." Angie Bray, conservative leader of the London Assembly, said: "It beggars belief that Mr Livingstone was prepared to sign a contract paying him i737,000 over two-and-a- half years after he retired as commissioner."
Brian
Cooke, chairman of TravelWatch, the London passenger watchdog, said: "During his tenure Mr Kiley was an excellent commissioner. "It is such a pity that Transport for London is continuing to pay him while not using his services."
Asked about Mr Kiley’s remarks that he did not "do much" for his consultancy fee, the Mayor’s spokeswoman said: "Bob Kiley was worth every penny we paid him as commissioner of transport for London. "He assembled the best transport leadership of any city in the world. He remains the most experienced transport expert in the world today and we paid him a retainer to enable us to draw upon his advice and expertise as and when necessary." In March last year, it was revealed that Mr Kiley got bonuses worth almost i700,000 in his final two years
at TfL. The payments came on top of a i1.5 million "golden farewell". In addition, he is being paid i3,200 a day as a TfL consultant which runs until next year.
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