THE office of the Gwent Police and Crime Commissioner has said it doesn’t know the cost of Carmel Napier’s pension.

However it appears that with payment of a notice period and legal advice the forced retirement of Carmel Napier has cost policing in Gwent almost £80,000.

The Argus made headlines in June when it revealed that the former chief constable of Gwent Police had been forced to retire by the police and crime commissioner (PCC) Ian Johnston.

Ian Johnston’s office has told this newspaper it holds no information on the value of Mrs Napier’s pension settlement, in response to a Freedom of Information Act request.

The response said no information is held and that the commissioner has no involvement with police pensions which are dealt with by an external provider.

It said that the pension settlement was no larger than what she would have received if she hadn’t been asked to retire.

However, the response said the terms of Mrs Napier’s contract were honoured, under which she was entitled to a payment of a six month notice period equivalent to half of her final salary of £126,471.

This means that Carmel Napier received a payment of around £63,235.

Ian Johnston has previously said that £16,000 was spent on legal advice on the matter, meaning the forced retirement of Carmel Napier has cost Gwent policing at least £79,235.

The Argus initially made the FOI request to Gwent Police. A police staffer told the Argus that the PCC held the information and the inquiry was passed to his office.

Wayne David, MP for Caerphilly, said Mrs Napier’s pension should be a matter of public record but questioned whether Mr Johnston would not know.

He suggested the published figure of £16,000 for legal costs could be a minimum.

“Ian Johnston himself was a senior police officer... One of the things we have found out is that he held a meeting with Mrs Napier a week after she achieved 30 years service.”

“If he hasn’t disclosed it to an FOI request that’s a serious matter,” he said.

A spokeswoman for the PCC said the former chief constable’s pension details are a personal matter.

“Mrs Napier is a member of the Police Pension Scheme 1987 and this scheme is administered by Capita,” she said.

She said figures for legal expenditure and costs relating to the PCC’s attendance at Home Affairs Select Committee were provided to the committee on July 2.