Achim Steiner, the incoming head of the United Nations' Environment Programme, was given his new job three months after he served on a jury that awarded a $500,000 prize to Kofi Annan, UN secretary-general.

Mr Annan's acceptance of the Dubai-backed Zayed prize for global leadership for the environment prompted critical inquiries at the time over whetherit was appropriate for asecretary-general to accept an award sponsored by the leaders of a UN member state.