David Sutherland, executive chairman of Tulloch, has joined fellow Scots housebuilder Stewart Milne in the ranks of Scotland's top-paid corporate executives.

Newly-published accounts show that the highest-paid director of the Inverness-based company was paid £4,542,000 last year, up from £601,902 in the previous 12 months. Some £4.2m of the pay-out was performance-related.

Tulloch's directors shared total performance bonuses of £6.8m, which saw the boardroom pay bill nearly quadruple, to £8.1m.

The bonuses are understood to be related to the September sale of Tulloch Construction to Rok for £31.3m in a deal which resulted in nearly 900 Scottish workers being transferred. The deal gave Tulloch £9.4m in Rok shares - equivalent to around 4% - and £21.9m cash.

Sutherland's pay packet ranks him among Scotland's highest-paid executives in salary terms, placing him in the company of such high-profile FTSE luminaries as Cairn Energy's Sir Bill Gammell (£5.5m) and Royal Bank of Scotland's Sir Fred Goodwin (£4m). Stewart Milne enjoyed a £5m salary last year.

Tulloch also confirmed yesterday that it has appointed Close Brothers, the London merchant bank, to evaluate options which include a flotation later this year. "At this point my preference is for a mix of new capital and robust banking support," said Sutherland.

Tulloch trebled pre-tax profits to £33.6m from £11.2m in 2005, though the 2006 figure was inflated by a profit of £30.1m on the sale of discontinued operations.

Sutherland said: "The 2006 trading year was a period of momentous change for the group, with significant corporate restructuring taking place which has allowed Tulloch to emerge as a business focused on housebuilding and property development. Our strong balance sheet means we are well positioned for future growth."