Disclosing bank bonuses: it's not just gawping

How many employees of, say, Royal Bank of Scotland earn £500,000 or more? It's impossible to guess. The only vaguely relevant piece of information was the one RBS chairman Sir Philip Hampton let slip last month – that 100 members of staff were awarded bonuses of £1m or more last year. Would a £500,000 threshold that takes in all elements of pay reveal many hundreds, or perhaps thousands? We may soon have answers – not just at RBS but across all big banks. The government set out proposals requiring banks to disclose pay details, in bands, for those earning more than £500,000. Prepare to be amazed. Critics will say a £500,000 threshold, rather than the £1m level proposed by Sir David Walker, invites gratuitous gawping. The point of disclosure, they say, is to help shareholders to assess risk and individuals earning less than £1m don't present much danger. It's a view but, come on, £500,000 is a chunky sum. "Middle earners" could represent a significant cost and investors also want to judge if a board is living up to Stephen Hester's aim of paying "the minimum we can get away with". More information could be useful.