Publically funded body, the Consumer Council, paid £1,730 for an article on its outgoing chief executive, Eleanor Gill, to appear in Northern Ireland’s Agenda magazine, the BBC reports – raising questions of editorial independence and the use of taxpayers money are raised by this.
But, says Rick Hill, chairman of the Consumer Council:
“It’s the Consumer Council’s role to make the consumer voice heard and make it count.
“We choose various methods to communicate that voice, one being buying editorial space in professional, trade or business magazines.
“The Consumer Council negotiated an annual block fee with Agenda NI of £7,415 in April 2008 to submit five articles over a 12-month period.”
I feel the Mrs Gill has done so much for us in Northern Ireland: with the Water Charge fiasco and the energy bills, that it is only right and proper that we applaude her achievements. Too often we knock people for doing a below par job, but Mrs Gill has delivered on every consumer issue she took up. In private business it is common practice to pay thousands of punds to the financial papers when a successful chief executive (and sometimes, not so successful ones too!) leaves a post. It is published with pictures and plaudites. We should be thanking Mrs Gill, and wishing her our best; not casting a shadow on a very brave career change.