Council tax squandered

More than 800 local officials now enjoy salaries and perks worth over £100,000 a year. That represents a 27 per cent increase over the previous year’s figure.

The extent of the gravy-train was revealed as it was confirmed yesterday that average council tax rises will be an inflation-busting four per cent this year.

The six best-paid town hall commissars earn annual packages worth more than £200,000 a year, an astonishing report makes clear. Altogether 14 chief executives earn more than the Prime Minister’s annual salary of £188,000.

Another 132 earn more than a Cabinet Minister’s annual wage of £137,579 and 88 get above £150,000. The startling figures, uncovered through the Freedom of Information Act by the TaxPayers’ Alliance, mean that the average salary for the country’s top council officials is £120,938 – more than £2,300 a week.

It also means the vast pension pot for local government staff in final salary schemes will swell even bigger, leaving taxpayers to pick up the bill.

Last night there was widespread bitterness and dismay that at a time when millions of hard-pressed Britons are seeing their council tax bills rocket with no obvious improvement in service, fat cat bureaucrats are living the high life.

Christine Melsom, of the anti-council tax campaign group IsItFair?, said: “These salaries are running out of control. And there are plenty more officials being added to council payrolls all the time. What makes these people think they are worth that kind of reward?

“I suspect many people working in local government are virtually unemployable outside the public sector.

“People are getting bills with big rises. There will be a very angry reaction once they realise exactly where all that money is going.”

The fat cat salaries were revealed in the annual Town Hall Rich List published by the TaxPayers’ Alliance yesterday. Matthew Elliott, chief executive of the pressure group, said: “Taxpayers have a right to know how much senior town hall officials are being paid because only then can we judge whether they deserve their remuneration.

“Too often, council executives are rewarded handsomely even when they fail. Families and pensioners are struggling with the demands of yet another council tax rise, and councils owe it to them to cut back on executive pay increases.”

Ben Farrugia, a policy analyst at the TaxPayers’ Alliance who helped compile the report, said: “Some local government executives still feel that what they’re paid is not the taxpayer’s business. But with council tax bills now tipping many families over the edge, it is more important than ever that councils are open and transparent about their costs. Council employees must be accountable to the local residents who pay them.”

Shadow Local Government Secretary Eric Pickles said: “A good chief executive can turn around a failing council.

“What is vital is that there is transparency and accountability in local government. The voter must be able to hold councils to account and have the access to forensically examine the performance of local officials.” But councils hit back, claiming they needed to offer “competitive” salaries to attract high-quality staff.

John Ransford, of the Local Government Association, said: “The naming of individuals by the TaxPayers’ Alliance needs to be taken with an immense dollop of salt as its report is not only out of date but some parts have also been compiled inaccurately.

“It is unfortunate that the TaxPayers’ Alliance has taken the form of personal attacks on individual people who have no part in the setting of salaries and no chance to defend themselves. These figures represent 0.0005 per cent of the total workforce in local government.

“Many councils have bigger budgets than FTSE-100 companies and to get the brightest people to deliver the best services for local people they need to pay a competitive wage.

“When senior salaries in the private sector are compared to senior salaries in the public sector, the taxpayer gets very good value for money.”

Some council officials named in the report have since retired, though they were employed when the TaxPayers’ Alliance requested salary details.

The highest paid, Northamptonshire’s Peter Gould, retired in May last year and was replaced by Katherine Kerswell. A spokesman for the council said: “To a large extent these are historical and not up-to-date figures.

“Our current chief executive is paid a salary within the pay grade agreed for this post. This is currently between £153,670 and £187,776.”

A spokesman for Hull Council said: “The chief executive’s salary for 2007/2008 is £187,890. This is not an unusually high salary, as many larger councils in England now pay their chief executives £200,000 or more a year.

“These salaries represent real value for money, in terms of the improvements that are being made in the quality of public services year on year, and in the large efficiency savings which are being achieved. Highly skilled and experienced chief executives are much in demand.”

Merrick Cockell, leader of  Kensington and Chelsea council, whose chief executive earned £213,162, said: “Coming from a business background, I know value for money when I see it and that is just what we are getting. This salary is performance related and we place high demands on our chief executive.”

Tony Woods, leader of Northampton Borough Council, said: “Mairi McLean left the council on March 7, 2007. “Mrs McLean’s salary fell within the band £130,000 to £139,999 so the figure quoted in the report includes other payments.”