Thurrock Gazette: Big surge in council high-earners

THE number of staff earning more than £50,000 has rocketed at councils across Essex, a new report has revealed.

Last year Thurrock Council spent £6,410,000 a year on the 98 people on salaries of £50,000 or above. In 2001 just 29 of its employees were on that figure.

Thurrock's spending is dwarfed by Essex County Council - which employs 586 people on salaries above £50,000. It is the fourth biggest spender in the country, shelling out just over £36million on big earners. Ten years ago, the county council employed just 37 people in the high wage bracket.

The numbers have also soared at Southend Council, rising almost tenfold from 14 employees in 1997 to 123 last year, at a cost of just over £8million. The number of high-earning staff at Basildon has increased from five in 2001 to 31 last year, costing £2,135,000.

The figures are revealed in a report by the Taxpayers' Alliance pressure group, which has examined the pay of middle and senior managers at local authorities nationwide.

Matthew Elliott, chief executive of the TaxPayers' Alliance, said: "With council tax doubling in the past decade, it's extremely disappointing town halls have chosen to hire a new class of middle managers, many of whom are being paid more than MPs.

"Local authorities should study these findings carefully to see where savings can be made, instead of using their half billion-pound PR machine to obscure their finances from taxpayers."