I thought some of you might appreciate this website that I came across referring to Ofcom and its 70 staff on contracts worth more than £100,000 a year and its CEO Mr Stephen Carter, a formerly mini driving unemployed COO of NTL, paid a staggering £250,000 per annum package:-

http://www.newlabourscandals.co.uk/bodies.htm

and see also

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/story/0,3604,1298555,00.html

For the full rundown on Mr Stepehn Carter, including comments from a former working colleague prior to Ofcom that "Carter showed little understanding for consumers. He did not understand the need to cut costs and improve customer service quickly enough"

Judging from Mr Carter's dismal track record at Ofcom on dealing with the 084/7 calling scandal it would certainly seem that the leopard has not changed his spots! ::)

Taken from the Guardian article listed above:
Quote:

When Stephen Carter was appointed to run Ofcom, the media industry's first super-regulator, there was little sound coming from the chattering classes - their jaws had universally dropped. At the time of his appointment, Carter was an unemployed 38-year-old whose last job was presiding over the bankruptcy protection proceedings of NTL, the cable company crushed by £12bn of debt Tim Suter, Ofcom partner in charge of content and standards, says one of Carter's strengths is "restlessness" which "can be tiring for the rest of us". Such hard work has produced the blizzard of consultation documents and reports that characterised Ofcom's first year. It is also necessary if the regulator is to fulfil its challenge to tackle big industry issues: public service broadcasting, digital switchover and telecommunication pricing, to name a few. A former colleague at NTL, who declined to be named, says Carter always preferred negotiating with industry stars rather than talking to junior members of the troubled company. "He likes talking to bigwigs like ministers, senior civil servants and industry chiefs, rather than operational staff." Carter's seeming regard for industry bosses is mutual. Media executives like his light-touch regulation and the sense that he was not so long ago one of them.

By all means read the full article its littered with quotes that are more than cause for concern.

He sounds a very busy man and the description of a "blizzard of consultation documents" seemed particularly apt given how difficult it is to read some of these documents!.   As BT once said, Mr Carter, don't work harder, work SMARTER!!

His apparent inclination towards speaking with industry big-wigs does not bode well for his role of listening to views of members of the public, does it?

Worst of all, however, I was shocked to read that media executives like his "light touch regulation" given not so long ago "he was one of them"!!!

I can see where NationalGeographicMan is coming from now.  Nevertheless I'm trying desparately not to be cynical, I'm really trying!!!!

wrote on Nov 8^th, 2005 at 10:29am:

Nevertheless I'm trying desparately not to be cynical, I'm really trying!!!!

But when you look at Ofcom's track record on the 084/7 issue and the bizarre proposals on 0845 that only make sense to protect the profits of AOL and Wanadoo it all begings to make even more sense where they are coming from.

People need to write to their MPs asking them to ask questions in Parliament about Ofcom failing to act in the best interests of uk citizens and consumers.