FOI - Role of the Night Czar [Feb 2023]

Your request

1. All job descriptions for the Night Czar role since it was created in 2016.
2. Any job advertisements for this role since it was created in 2016.
3. All key performance indicators for this role since it was created in 2016.
4. All assessments of the effectiveness of this role since 2016.
5. The salary that this role has commanded each year since it was created.
6. All expenses claimed by the current holder of this role since 1 January 2022.

Our response

1. The role of Night Czar was originally established in 2016 on a consultancy basis with a fee of £37,500 per year. It became apparent that this was insufficient and the then Head of Paid Service concluded it was more appropriate for this role to be fulfilled as a GLA employee.

Please find attached: 

• The original job description used to advertise the role in 2016
• The first job description as a GLA employee from 2017 to 2021
• The job description following regrading in 2021

2. The role has been filled since it was created in 2016. The role was not advertised when it went from a consultancy contract to a member of staff. The Deputy Mayor, Culture and the Creative Industries, Assistant Director of HR and Organisational Development and Head of Paid Service met with the Assembly and explained how the role went from contract to employee without a recruitment process. We do not hold a copy of the original advertisement. 

3. Key performance indicators (KPIs) are broken down by programme not by post.  
KPIs are submitted to the London Assembly Budget and Performance Committee and published in their meeting papers.

4. Personal Performance Reviews are exempt from disclosure under section 40 ('Personal information') of the Freedom of Information Act 2000. Personal information is defined by Article 4(1) of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) to mean any information relating to an identified or identifiable living individual. It is considered that disclosure of this information would contravene the first data protection principle under Article 5(1) of GDPR which states that personal data must be processed lawfully, fairly and in a transparent manner in relation to the data subject.

In 2016, the London Assembly scrutinised the appointment. From 2016-17 the Night Czar role was assessed against the objectives set out in the contract detailed within this Mayor’s Question Time response.

There have been many questions submitted by Assembly Members to the Mayor on the Night Czar role.

5. Amy Lamé started working at the GLA on 1 September 2017.

• From 2017 to 2021 the role was paid at grade 13. Please see attached salary scales for that period.
• The Night Czar role is currently paid at grade 15 (from the start of the current mayoral term). 

6.    The expenses incurred by the Night Czar are reported to the Audit Panel on a quarterly basis.

If you have any further questions relating to this matter, please contact us, quoting reference MGLA020223-8966.