Search for new council chief cost £55,000

The authority, which has announced that 300 jobs will go in the coming year after the Government cut 7m from its budget, said the money funded meetings with partners, stakeholders and councillors as well as interviews and advertising.

Mr Riordan announced he was leaving Regional Development Agency Yorkshire Forward earlier this year and will take up his post at the council next month.

A council spokeswoman said that in order to minimise the cost, they employed a company based in Leeds, who covered all the work for a base fee, meaning they made no profit throughout the process.

"The post of chief executive is a highly important job in the city and we wanted to find the right candidate.

"This meant a series of rigorous tests needed to be carried out, along with candidates meeting with representatives from external partners and stakeholders, as well as elected members from across political groups before the final interviews by the employment committee.

"The cost associated with this recruitment process is in line with recruiting to this type of position.

"Throughout the process we worked closely with the agency to ensure the most cost effective methods were used."

The figures, obtained using the Freedom of Information Act, revealed the fee to the agency included costs such as a long-list meeting, technical interviews leading to a short-list meeting and final interviews which were held over two days in April.