Aberdeen City Council is paying its interim planning chief more than the Lord Advocate makes in a year, the Press and Journal can reveal.
Eight months after planning boss Maggie Bochel quit, the local authority is still no further forward in finding a replacement for the £80,000 position.
Instead, the council has been forced to pay “above the odds” for a stand-in manager – who is believed to be receiving 150% of the salary on offer to a full-time staffer.
John Lynch, of Leeds firm Lynch Planning Consultancy Ltd, is currently running the service for the authority.
It is believed the firm is receiving around £120,000 – more than Scotland’s top legal officer, Frank Mulholland, who is currently paid £117,102.
The council was rocked last July when Ms Bochel, who had steered planning policy for 10 years at the town house, joined a mass exodus of staff from the authority.
And despite two days of interviews last week, “no suitable candidates” have been found for the role.
Last night, opposition councillors rounded on the administration and suggested their close involvement with planning matters and controversial decisions, such as Union Terrace Gardens, may be putting prospective candidates off.
But council leaders insisted none of the applicants had met the “high standards” required for the high-profile job.
In the meantime, chartered town planner Mr Lynch is at the helm – although did not wish to comment last night.
A statement on his firm’s website states: “John Lynch is a chartered town planner, formerly a director of planning in a large city council, with experience of senior corporate management in a number of local authorities over many years.
“John is able to work on a flexible basis in response to client requirements, either independently or as part of a team and has good network links with practitioners in other disciplines.
“The company provides a high value, competitive and cost-effective service.”
Ms Botchel, who joined Grampian Regional Council in 1990 and had been the city’s head of planning since 2005, joined the law firm Burness Paull as a director in September.
She quit just weeks after the council approved its long-awaited city centre masterplan, which includes 49 projects.
Mark Cole has since been appointed as city centre masterplan director – on a similarly high salary – to manage the projects rather than combining them into the planning role.
Last night, deputy leader of the opposition SNP group, Graham Dickson, claimed the authority was not doing enough to “retain valued staff”.
He said: “While I understand that it is vital that we get this decision right it is also important to remember that they have had to appoint an interim manager costing the council significantly more.
“I’ve no doubt the way the administration has been operating when it comes to decisions around planning would certainly put off quality candidates from coming forward for the job.
“They will see that there are other bigger cities around the country who approach these matters with a more mature attitude.
“Planners may also not want to be attached to controversial decisions made by the administration on the likes of Union Terrace Gardens and Marischal Square.
“Aberdeen is a global city and should be able to attract the cream of the crop.”
His comments were echoed by the chief of Taxpayer Scotland Eben Wilson who warned against “endless searches” for the ideal candidate.
He said: “Everyone knows planning requires management and a sense of vision but such a candidate shouldn’t be so hard to find that the post remains vacant for so long.
“The city must not waste money, especially given the ambitious masterplan work ahead of it.”
But last night planning convener Ramsay Milne, who sat on the interview panel, said that none of the candidates met “the high standard” expected.
He said: “There have been a limited number of candidates available of the calibre we require.
“We want the best and the members felt that the candidates didn’t meet our high standard.
“We will continue to try and attract a suitable person.”
An Aberdeen City Council spokeswoman said last night: “We were unable to make an appointment to the head of planning and sustainable development following a recent rigorous selection process.”