LETTER:Per capita costs

From Mr F. E. Rogers

Sir: As a "headhunter" with 12 years' international experience, I am bemused by the "competitive market" argument used to justify chief executives' pay, particularly in public utilities. If someone needs to be paid £500,000 today to prevent them from being headhunted elsewhere, why did this not happen, say, four years ago, when they were earning only £80,000, probably in the same job?

In reality, British executives are not highly rated overseas and few are ever headhunted by American, German or other large foreign companies.

Yours faithfully,

F. E. ROGERS

Tisbury, Wiltshire

22 March