Reform call over "pitiful" pay rate at BoE's court Non-executive directors of the Bank of England should be paid more to reflect an increased workload and to boost their prestige, according to BoE officials involved in a governance reorganisation. The eight external non-executives in the 12-seat "court" - as the BoE's governing body is named - are paid just £15,000 a year for a time commitment of three days a month. The chairman of the court, Sir David Lees, who works three to four days a week in his role, is paid £30,000. "This needs to change," said one person who is backing the reforms. "£15,000 is pitiful. It suggests people are only turning up for tea. Equivalent private sector roles are far better paid. The chairmen of the UK's big banks typically receive £750,000, while non-executives earn £50,000 to £100,000. Not everyone on the court supports higher pay. One person who has been a member in the past said: "It's fascinating work. You could pay people 10 times more or you could pay them nothing. Everyone would still do the job. However, reformers argue it is not a matter of the amounts, but of perception. "Continuing to call this body the court and paying people so little conveys the wrong impression externally," said one. Sir David is understood to support the idea of higher pay. But for the proposal to succeed, it would need to be taken up by Mark Carney, the incoming governor, and be backed by George Osborne, the chancellor. Mr Carney, who is currently governor of Canada's central bank, has maintained a distance from the BoE since he was named as Sir Mervyn King's successor last November, spending only a few days in the UK since then and liaising only occasionally with officials. He is widely expected to be a reformist, especially in the key area of monetary policy - he implied shortly after his nomination that the BoE could use more activist tactics to help fuel economic recovery. He will be a powerful influence in bank regulation, too, having been head of the global Financial Stability Board since 2011. Given the pressing nature of those two jobs, overhauling the BoE's governing body may not be a priority. But officials believe Mr Carney may be keen to use governance reforms to send a signal to politicians and the market that the bank is modernising. The issue of BoE governance has long been sensitive, with critics of the current regime arguing the court has failed to hold Sir Mervyn to account. Some reformers, such as Andrew Tyrie, who chairs parliament's Treasury select committee, have argued it should be disbanded and replaced by a supervisory board of non-executives. As a compromise, the Bank has created a new "oversight committee," comprising the court's non-executives, which will have more powers to police the BoE's executive. Sir Mervyn has overseen some governance reforms over recent years and more changes are already in train for Mr Carney's tenure. A chief operating officer is set to be appointed to take over the administrative running of the BoE in the summer, while hierarchies could be formalised to spread more management responsibility across the governor and three deputy governors. The governance changes are all the more important, reformers argue, given the BoE's vastly increased influence and remit. Since the start of this month, it has taken over bank regulation from the disbanded Financial Services Authority, through its new Prudential Regulation Authority wing. Body that became robust foil to governor after crisis The "court" of the Bank of England, founded in 1694, is as ancient as the Old Lady herself, writes Patrick Jenkins . Originally it was central to the way the bank operated, with its members deciding on weekly financing operations. In more recent decades, however, it slipped into a sleepier role, becoming a rather lightweight imitation of a corporate board of non-executive directors. Its power receded over the years as the governor's increased, and when the financial crisis took hold in 2007 and 2008 the court was criticised for failing to ensure financial stability was being monitored by BoE executives. Under the direction of Alistair Darling, the Labour former chancellor, it was shaken up and Sir David Lees, an experienced businessman, was brought in to add credibility. Criticism has not gone away - in particular for perceived foot-dragging in producing a critique of the bank's behaviour in the run-up to the crisis. Nonetheless, supporters of Sir David's tenure say he has professionalised the way the court operates and ensured it is now a robust, if still low-key, foil to the powers of the governor and deputy governors. Among its responsibilities are deciding the BoE's strategy and objectives, budget and senior appointments, although the Treasury still retains the power to appoint the governor and members of the bank's two key policy committees: the Monetary Policy Committee and the Financial Policy Committee. Reformers" efforts to radically overhaul and rebrand the court as a supervisory board have failed. But this month a new "oversight committee" - a subset of the court comprising its non-executives - gained fresh powers to hold executives to account.