Network Rail appoints new boss Mark Carne

[GodAtum]

Network Rail has announced that Mark Carne, a former oil executive, will be its new chief executive.

Mr Carne, who used to work at Royal Dutch Shell, will receive a basic annual salary of £675,000, which is some £80,000 more than his predecessor.

He will join the rail network manager next year, formally taking over from Sir David Higgins in April.

State-backed Network Rail is the owner of most of the UK's track and many of its biggest stations.

The BBC's transport correspondent Richard Westcott said Sir David will be missed by many, including the trade unions, who credit him with improving both the "notoriously defensive" culture at Network Rail and industrial relations.

Mark Carne was previously executive vice-president of Shell in the Middle East and North Africa.
'Insult to passengers'

Network Rail said his salary was determined following an "exhaustive and independent process", involving comparing salaries of chief executives in the public and private sectors.

Although his base salary is higher than Sir David's, the company said his overall remuneration package, including bonuses, would not be greater.

Network Rail's chairman, Richard Parry Jones, said Mr Carne had shown that he has "the necessary skill and global experience to build on, and develop further, what Network Rail has already achieved... under the leadership of David Higgins".

Mr Carne said: "The success of Network Rail is vital for Britain's economy and this is an exciting time for the whole rail industry."

But in a statement the main transport workers union, the TSSA, criticised the size of Mr Carne's salary.

"At a time of ever-increasing rail fares, and falling wages, we think this is an insult to rail passengers who have seen price rises of 20% since May 2010," said TSSA leader Manuel Cortes.

"We don't blame Mr Carne for taking the money but he should never have been offered it in the first place."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-23974267

No wonder why people fare evade. If railway executives have huge salaries people think the TOCs can afford a little bit of fare evasion.

 

[tbtc]

No wonder why people fare evade. If railway executives have huge salaries people think the TOCs can afford a little bit of fare evasion

People evade fares because they are dishonest or feel that it is a victimless crime.

They don't check the Network Rail accounts to determine the salary of the chief executive beforehand (unless you are claiming that there would be no fare dodging if the chief executive only earned £20,000?).

Using this salary as justification for fare dodging, or blaming it for the problems that we have with revenue collection doesn't really add up.

we think this is an insult to rail passengers who have seen price rises of 20% since May 2010

Which fares have gone up 20% in three years?

 

[YorkshireBear]

Nobody wants to run network rail because they can never ever do right. They are constantly battling government and every other bad thing that comes with the job. I am not surprised they are having to offer this kind of salary.

And network rail are not a TOC, and the fare evasion point is irrelevant...

 

[PR1Berske]

His salary should be slashed. It's an insult to ordinary passengers.

 

[GRALISTAIR]

Nobody wants to run network rail because they can never ever do right. They are constantly battling government and every other bad thing that comes with the job. I am not surprised they are having to offer this kind of salary.

And network rail are not a TOC, and the fare evasion point is irrelevant...

Totally agree +1

 

[alex17595]

I would have thought the salary comes from the government. How much do they make from track access charges and what other income do they have from TOCs?

 

[YorkshireBear]

His salary should be slashed. It's an insult to ordinary passengers.

If he is going to be in charge of six tracking the WCML then i should hope his salary is doubled!

Why is it an insult??? Because they deserve the salary??? He is head of the most intensively used infrastructure in the world. Why doesn't he deserve a good salary?

 

[Ironside]

If he is going to be in charge of six tracking the WCML then i should hope his salary is doubled!

Why is it an insult??? Because they deserve the salary??? He is head of the most intensively used infrastructure in the world. Why doesn't he deserve a good salary?

Quite, if he can juggle all of the responsibilities and get network rail to perform more effectively and keep the investment coming in then good luck to him, if not he won't last long.

 

[Darren R]

Leaving arguments about his salary to one side (since they are fruitless and - in my opinion - largely irrelevant), what is the general impression about the quality of the appointment itself? Is the fact that he comes to NetworkRail as an industry outsider likely to be a good or bad thing?

 

[tbtc]

Leaving arguments about his salary to one side (since they are fruitless and - in my opinion - largely irrelevant), what is the general impression about the quality of the appointment itself? Is the fact that he comes to NetworkRail as an industry outsider likely to be a good or bad thing?

Mark Carne was previously executive vice-president of Shell in the Middle East and North Africa

I think that in his role, diplomacy and negotiation between various parties who want very different things is going to be a lot more useful than knowing how to do the "ground work".

I know that those inside the industry will insist that you need to be able to operate a signal box before you deserve to be in the boardroom though.

 

[TOCDriver]

In jobs like this, you can very easily pay for yourself by increasing efficiency by a miniscule percent. That's why the salary is so high and that's why you need a high slarly to get somebody with proven experience in making such cost savings.

 

[PR1Berske]

If he is going to be in charge of six tracking the WCML then i should hope his salary is doubled!

Why is it an insult??? Because they deserve the salary??? He is head of the most intensively used infrastructure in the world. Why doesn't he deserve a good salary?

At a time of economic hardship and record breaking fare increases, he should do the right thing by accepting a pay cut.

TOC staff and other rail workers are feeling the pinch. Why isn't he?

 

[Prairie_5542]

He's on a salary of over £600,000 and railway men and women left right and centre are being made redundant. He's on more than the Prime Minister!! He should take a pay cut down to £300,000 at least and the money saved should be used to save jobs!!!! Rant over!

 

[cjp]

I believe that one of the Swiss Cantons is shortly having a referendum the effect of which would be to limit the top pay to no more than 12 times the lowest - on the grounds that 12 times what one person exists on is enough.
Applied here would it mean a either lower top pay or increments all around so that a lower lineman would get at least £56,000.
Or a bit of both.

 

[PR1Berske]

I believe that one of the Swiss Cantons is shortly having a referendum the effect of which would be to limit the top pay to no more than 12 times the lowest - on the grounds that 12 times what one person exists on is enough.
Applied here would it mean a either lower top pay or increments all around so that a lower lineman would get at least £56,000.
Or a bit of both.

Yes!

He's on a salary of over £600,000 and railway men and women left right and centre are being made redundant. He's on more than the Prime Minister!! He should take a pay cut down to £300,000 at least and the money saved should be used to save jobs!!!! Rant over!

Hell yes!

 

[Prairie_5542]

Yes!



Hell yes!

Ai! too much money! There are some areas on the Network could do with that money!

 

[Clip]

Wow, some of you are like the Daily Mail in your approach to this.

Knowledgeable and experienced people within the corporate world who have to deal with other people exactly the same do not come cheap. You get someone who will do it for less money will more than likely have less experience and less knowledge, and lets face it , diplomacy, when it comes to dealing with other corporations*. And that in itself could set back releations between the whole of the railway years. And it doesnt help having to deal with Government departments either.

There is a saying, which I wont write here for fear of getting jumped on but we all know what it is and it does apply in these sort of roles and positions in the modern day world.

*Petter squabbles between Virgin and NR excepted.

 

[PR1Berske]

Wow, some of you are like the Daily Mail in your approach to this.

Knowledgeable and experienced people within the corporate world who have to deal with other people exactly the same do not come cheap. You get someone who will do it for less money will more than likely have less experience and less knowledge, and lets face it , diplomacy, when it comes to dealing with other corporations*.

This man has no prior role with the railways, so how could less money get us "less experience" ?

 

[Prairie_5542]

If he has no prior railway knowledge or experience how can he expect to be paid that amount. I am still in favour of the old- start at the bottom and work your way up. How does he know about job roles etc when he hasn't even done the jobs himself,.

 

[Clip]

This man has no prior role with the railways, so how could less money get us "less experience" ?

Hmm, maybe if you go back and read the whole of my post, specifically with the reference to the corporate world and to dealing with governments then maybe you would actually understand what I was going on about.


But I fear I may be wasting my time trying to point this out or trying to explain it further.

 

[Prairie_5542]

Hmm, maybe if you go back and read the whole of my post, specifically with the reference to the corporate world and to dealing with governments then maybe you would actually understand what I was going on about.


But I fear I may be wasting my time trying to point this out or trying to explain it further.

Clip, I see your point. But the world of railways is very different from the word of oil. Is he going to be the man who stands up for the railway??

 

[Clip]

Clip, I see your point. But the world of railways is very different from the word of oil. Is he going to be the man who stands up for the railway??

Given that his job happens to be the CEO of the infrastructure owner then I bloody well hope so.

CEO's all over big companies have people come to and from them who may not have marched up through the ranks from a lowly hourly paid worker within the same industry as they are CEO of.

In fact his predecessor was not and neither was his predecessor either, in fact John Armitt got paid even more than this guy is, so you could say that NR have reduced the pay they are giving their CEOs since John Armitt- but that wouldnt give you a good soundbite to moan upon would it?


Also its worth noting that they are paying him a higher salary so that his bonus is smaller, so you dont moan about that come bonus time either.

But I guess his income tax going back into the treasury coffers wont appease you either.

 

[PR1Berske]

Clip, I see your point. But the world of railways is very different from the word of oil. Is he going to be the man who stands up for the railway??

Questions To Which The Answer Is Probably Not.

 

[Clip]

Questions To Which The Answer Is Probably Not.

Why would it be not?

Do you not do the job you are paid to do then and go about doing something else?

 

[Prairie_5542]

It just seems a lot of money to me!

 

[Clip]

It just seems a lot of money to me!

You're stating that he wont do his job to help the railways because he is getting paid a lot of money?

Thats like the Chewbacca defence in as much as it does not make sense.

 

[Prairie_5542]

You're stating that he wont do his job to help the railways because he is getting paid a lot of money?

Thats like the Chewbacca defence in as much as it does not make sense.

It's early days yet to see what he is going to do as after all, he's only just been appointed the job.

I just can't believe the salary, that's all. How do they get to that valuation?

 

[jon0844]

Random Number Generator.

Or the usual negotiations that many people have for more ordinary jobs. If you're someone wanted for the role, you can probably negotiate stronger than someone else.

That's the way it goes whenever a job doesn't have a rigid scale.

 

[Clip]

It's early days yet to see what he is going to do as after all, he's only just been appointed the job.
I just can't believe the salary, that's all. How do they get to that valuation?

But it is you who is making assumptions as you have done on this thread already without him even getting his first cuppa on the job.

 

[BlythPower]

But I guess his income tax going back into the treasury coffers wont appease you either.

You really think he'll be paying much in the way of tax? :roll: