The Executive Board of Carmarthenshire County Council has finally backed down in its dispute over the payment of employer pension contributions to the Chief Executive. Minutes of the meeting (here) state:

"Whilst the Board was not prepared, at this stage, to accept that the principle of the policy, aimed at encouraging recruitment and retention of senior officers, was intrinsically unlawful it did accept that there may have been shortcomings in the procedures by which it had been adopted. The Board, not wishing to incur further unnecessary expenditure in this matter, therefore

UNANIMOUSLY RESOLVED

4.1. without conceding that it is intrinsically unlawful, that the pay supplement policy be withdrawn on procedural grounds."

The matter will now be handed over to one of the Assistant Chief Executives to sort out.

What we don't know is whther the chief executive will now repay the pension contributions, but it is racing certainty that he will not be expected to cough up the untold thousands in legal and other bills which this has cost the council's taxpayers.

What will happen over the disputed libel indemnities awarded to Mr James remains to be seen.