According to the company's accounts, turnover for the year ending June 30, 2002, was up eight per cent to £12.8m. This was split between system sales, which fell from £3.65m to £1.5m, and service sales, which were up from £8.92m to £11.34m over the same period.

At the same time it invested heavily in IT equipment and underwent a restructuring process that resulted in several redundancies. With the exception of managing director Paul Tucker, the average salary for Audatex's 76 personnel, excluding National Insurance and pension, was £40,529 – up 17 per cent from £34,551 the previous year.

One critic says: “It's amazing – the company profits fall by 39 per cent but the directors and staff get a large salary increase.” In response, Audatex says: “It is not our policy to comment on individual renumeration, but the figures quoted in the accounts relate to a new package that saw the assimilation of the managing director role with that of the general manager. The salary was set by representatives of the shareholders.”

A supporter adds: “It is good to see the senior management are being rewarded for their efforts. They have worked tirelessly.”