The TaxPayers' Alliance - Media Coverage

Wrexham Evening Leader: Doctor's £100K salary 'appropriate' say council

By Amy Illingworth
FLINTSHIRE council has defended paying a senior doctor more than £100k a year after a list of top earners in local authorities was revealed.
In the Tax Payers' Alliance 'Town Hall Rich List', 818 of the most highly paid people in local authorities are revealed.

It includes people receiving salaries of at least £100,000 in the 450-plus councils across the UK.

Included in this, is a previous Flintshire council chief executive, Philip McGreevy, who was paid £109,862.

As well as this, it was revealed that a Flintshire occupational physician was paid £105,725 between 2006 to 2007.

A spokesman for the authority said: "This is a senior medical position and it is an appropriate salary band for the role."

The council refused to provide details of a third employee with remuneration above £100,000 who has now left the council and Flintshire Council is named in the list as one of the 'five most ludicrous local authority excuses for withholding information'.

The reason given to the Tax Payers' Alliance for refusing to give this information was based on the Human Rights Act.

The authority said: "Were such information to be available to the public on demand, this would be likely to adversely affect the individual's personal privacy and Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights would be engaged.

"Therefore not only would release of the information be unfair but it would also be unlawful, under Section 6 of the Human Rights Act 1998."

But the Tax Payers' Alliance reported that since the Companies Act 1985, companies have been compelled to make public their directors' remuneration.

They say this has survived the Human Rights Act 1998 unscathed.

Key findings of the Town Hall Rich List are that there are six people in town halls earning more than £200,000 a year, there are 14 people in local authorities earning more than the Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, who earns £188,849 including his MP's salary and there are 88 people in town halls earning above £150,000 a year.

There are also 132 people in local authorities earning more than cabinet ministers, who earn £137,579, including their MPs' salaries

Matthew Elliott, chief executive of the TaxPayers' Alliance, said: "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 hikes."

Shields Gazette: £100k pay packets for council top earners

By David MacLean
FOUR senior positions at South Tyneside Council are paid six-figure salaries – including the Chief Executive who earns almost £130,000-a-year.
The pay package of Irene Lucas, the most senior officer of the council, was published in a report from the Taxpayers Alliance, who obtained the figure using the Freedom of Information Act.

It revealed that 800 town hall officers across the UK earned more than £100,000 a year.

Ms Lucas was paid £129,135, including benefits, during the 2006/07 financial year, an increase of 2.9 per cent on her salary the previous year, of £125,439.

The average increase for high-salaried council executives on the list was 4.6 per cent.

One other officer of the council was paid more than £100,000 in the previous financial year, according to the Alliance's figures, but the council declined to release his or her name to the group.

However, a spokesman has since confirmed to the Gazette it was former executive director for children and young people Kim Bromley-Derry, who earned £100,872 in 2006/07. The payscale for executive directors at the council, of which there are three, is now £99,458 – £109,403.

Their total remuneration includes salary, bonuses, benefits-in-kind, any relevant returning officer payments, car allowances, private medical insurance and redundancy payments.

Spokesman for the Taxpayers' Alliance Mark Wallace, said: "A lot of people will be shocked to find that while many local families are on low incomes and pensioners struggle to make ends meet, the chief executive of South Tyneside Council can be paid this salary.

"Councils often claim that they need to offer these wages to secure the very best employees. But her salary is just a few thousand pounds short of a Cabinet Minister. Is her job really as complex and taxing as say the Foreign Secretary?"

Cabinet ministers such as South Shields MP and Foreign Secretary David Miliband are paid a basic salary of £137,579. However, Ms Lucas' salary is far lower than her local counterparts.

Ged Fitzgerald, chief executive of Sunderland City Council was paid £174,000 in 2006/07, and Mark Henderson, the chief executive of Northumberland County Council, received almost £150,000 in the same period.

A spokesman for South Tyneside Council said: "Information about salaries of senior officers was supplied to the Taxpayers' Alliance and we are happy to provide that information to local council tax payers. The chief executive has always disclosed her pay; the other salary highlighted in the report is that of Kim Bromley-Derry our former executive director for children and young people.

"We are a high performing and much improved council. We challenge all our spending to ensure we deliver value for money for our residents."
Six people in town halls across Britain earn more than £200,000 a year, while 88 earn more than £150,000. Fourteen earn more than the Prime Minister, who pulls in £188,849.

Scarborough Evening News: Top earners revealed in new list

By James Hanley
FIVE bosses at North Yorkshire County Council are picking up six-figure pay packets, it has been revealed.
Chief executive, John Marsden, was the top earner during 2006-07, with a total remuneration of £163,545 – a 24.2 per cent increase on the previous year. The figure includes allowances of £4,563.

Derek Law, the director of adult and community services, was next with £119,017, followed by Cynthia Welbourne, the director of children and young peoples services, on £118,050.

John Moore, the director of finance and central services, was the fourth highest-paid employee on £117,867, with Gordon Gresty, the director of business and environmental services, fifth with a total remuneration of £117,596.

A county council spokesman said: “We continue to pay our senior managers at the middle range compared with other authorities, many of which are significantly smaller.”

The figures are dwarfed by the top-earning town hall chief Northamptonshire’s Philip Gould, who has now retired, who was paid £215,000.

Other high earners include North Yorkshire and York Primary Care Trust chief executive Janet Soo-Chung, who receives a salary of £70,000 to £75,000, with benefits of £30,000 to £35,000, and ex-Scarborough footballer Jason Rockett, who is now chief executive of Sheffield United plc, who earns £127,000 a year.

Scarborough Council has no members of staff who earn more than £100,000. No-one at the council was available for comment on the issue.

The research was carried out under the Freedom of Information Act by pressure group the TaxPayers’ Alliance.

The Portsmouth News: Fraudster will be paying debt until he is 110

By Simon Jones, Court reporter
A benefit fraudster who pocketed more than £55,000 of taxpayers' money has been given 52 years to pay back the cash.

Graham Waterman, pictured on page one, would be 110 years old by the time he has paid back all the money that he fraudulently claimed over a nine-year period.

The 58-year-old is paying back £10 per week to the Department for Work and Pensions and £12 per week to Portsmouth City Council – most of which is being taken from the benefits he legitimately claims.

He has already paid back £780 to the DWP.

Today, pressure groups described the arrangement as absurd.

Mark Wallace, campaigns director from the Taxpayers Alliance said: 'This is a shambles. The least the authorities should do is make sure the scheme is practical for the repayment of the money. The chance of getting this money back is minimal. With this absurd settlement taxpayers have been let down.'

Between 1997 and 2006 ,Waterman claimed £55,813 in income support, housing benefit and council tax benefit that he was not entitled to by failing to tell the authorities that his wife Linda, was working as a carer. He also didn't mention that he was working for two months at the beginning of 2006.

At Portsmouth Crown Court Waterman, of Lumsden Road, Eastney, Portsmouth admitted eight counts of furnishing a false statement so as to obtain benefit.

Recorder Lucinda Davis imposed a 10-month prison sentence suspended for 18 months on Waterman – and said she had spared him an immediate prison sentence for his wife's sake.

The court heard Mrs Waterman, who was diagnosed with cancer in 2006, needed around the clock care, which was provided by her husband.

Waterman's barrister Anthony Bailey told the court his client's initial claim for benefit was legitimate as he had health problems but he continued to claim when his circumstances changed.

Tony Nicholas, Portsmouth City Council's head of revenues and benefits said: 'This money has been defrauded and we're trying to get it back as quickly as we can. But the government's regulations say the maximum we can claim back is £12 a week.'

A spokeswoman for the DWP added: 'When people are convicted for benefit fraud, we always seek to recover that overpayment.

'We are determined to recoup the stolen money but we don't want to cause the person unnecessary suffering.'

Kent News: Alliance: Gilroy earns more than Gordon Brown

The chief executive of Kent County Council has been named as one of the local authority leaders across the country earning more than the Prime Minister.


The Taxpayers’ Alliance found 14 council employees in local government positions with salaries above Gordon Brown’s £188,849.


KCC’s chief executive Peter Gilroy comes third in the alliance’s ‘rich list’ of top local authority earners making more than £200,000 a year.


Cllr Alex King, deputy leader of the authority, defended the salary.

He said: “Mr Gilroy manages the biggest shire authority in the country which remains consistently excellent as independently defined by the Audit Commission, with an annual budget of £1.8 billion and more than 40,000 staff.


“In recognition of this the council’s personnel committee, which consists of elected members from all the political parties, agreed to renew his contract in November 2006 on a total salary of £207,000 per annum and provision for a performance related bonus.


“He receives no company car, health insurance, mortgage relief or any other fringe benefit.”


The Alliance used Freedom of Information requests to compile the list and said KCC was among the authorities that refused to release the data.


KCC refused to release the names of officials earning more than £100,000, citing human rights legislation.

Cllr King said: "Local Authorities must by law publish accounts annually, this includes salary bands of all staff earning in excess of £50,000 and this information is easily accessible on the internet.


“We did not withhold information from the Alliance other than the names of those staff on legal advice relating to human rights and data protection."


Matthew Elliot, the Alliance’s chief executive, 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.


“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 hikes.”

Northampton Chronicle & Echo: MP's fury over fat cat council bosses

By Wayne Bontoft

The astranomical salaries of Northamptonshire's fat-cat council chiefs will be raised in the House of Commons.

The Chronicle & Echo revealed the former boss of Northamptonshire County Council, Peter Gould, had topped a national survey of Britain's best paid council workers with his annual salary of £215,000.

In fourth place in the national survey, carried out by the Taxpayers Alliance, was former Northampton Borough Council chief executive Mairi McLean, who took home £205,000 in her final year with the council.

After learning of the massive figures, Northampton North's Labour MP , Sally Keeble, has pledged to raise the matter in the House of Commons.

She said: "I think it's absolutely outrageous that they should be at the top of the pay leagues when both councils are quite far from the top of the performance tables.

"It's just nonsense that they both earned more than the Prime Minister, their jobs don't bear any comparison with running the country.

"I'm certainly going to table a whole lot of questions about it in the House this week."

In all, a total of 10 County Hall staff were named among council workers across the country who earn above £100,000.

But a spokesman for Northamptonshire County Council said six of the 10 staff highlighted no longer worked for the authority and claimed the figures released by the Taxpayers Alliance did not represent the whole picture.

She said: "The Taxpayers Alliance are always keen to highlight what appears to be interesting statistics, but very often they omit some very important context.

"The council is the largest employer in the county and is responsible for services such as schools, children's services, services for older people, the fire service, roads and transport.

"It is inevitable that people with overall responsibility for such services, 9,000 staff – not including those in schools – and a £350million budget are paid a wage to reflect this responsibility."

The current chief executive of Northamptonshire County Council, Katherine Kerswell, earns between £153,670 and £187,776 while the new chief executive of Northampton Borough Council, David Kennedy, earns between £130,000 and £139,999.

Aside from Northampton Borough Council and Northamptonshire County Council, no other councils in the county have staff on more than £100,000.

South Northamptonshire Council failed to release any figures.

Wigan Evening Post: Union's fury at top pay

By RIchard Bean
A Wigan union leader has described the Town Hall management salaries revealed by the TaxPayers Alliance as a "slap in the face."

A source at Wigan's Unison branch, the main Metro union, said the percentage pay rises for bosses were "even more eye opening" when set against the government's latest pay 2.2% pay offer last week for Metro workers.

He was speaking out after the release by the TPA of the second annual Town Hall Rich List.
The latest figures reveal details of the 818 local authority employees who earn over £100,000 a year from the taxpayer. As well as providing individual data for officials in hundreds of councils across the country, the report reveals:

Six people in town halls earn more than £200,000 a year
88 earn more than £150,000
14 earn more than the Prime Minister (£188,849)
132 earn more than a Cabinet Minister (£137,579).
The average received by those on the list is £120,938 – more than £2,300 a week.

The union leader, who did not want to be named, said: "When you compare it to what most council staff are expected to accept in their pay packets it is even more of a slap in the face." The joint trade unions have submitted a pay claim for an increase of 6% or "just 50p" increase per hour, whichever was the greater.

He said: "We have already put up with 10 years of below-inflation pay settlements but clearly the Government does not expect this to apply to the top brass.
"The employers have completely ignored the justice of our claim and are prepared to let every teaching assistant, librarian, social worker and park attendant in Wigan face increasing hardship, while the senior managers are again laughing all the way to the bank."

Wigan Evening Post: Metro chief earns more than PM

By RIchard BEan
Eight Wigan council officials earn more than £100,000 a year– with the chief executive receiving more than the Prime Minister.
Wigan Metro boss Joyce Redfearn tops the local list with a salary of £191,557, making her one of 14 council employees in the country earning more than Gordon Brown who is paid £188,000 each year.

The rich-list, published by the TaxPayers Alliance (TPA) was obtained using Freedom of Information laws, and compares the salaries with the starting pay of a police officer (£20,000) and a soldier (£15,300).

Those who appear in both this year's Rich List and last year's enjoyed an average pay rise of 4.6% - more than double the government's target for public sector wage inflation.
The number of people featured on the list has risen from 645 last year to 818 this year - a rise of 27%, showing a boom in high salary executives.

The TPA reveal that Wigan council had eightstaff paid more than £100,000 per year in 2006 / 07. Chief executive Joyce Redfearn heads the roll call with a salary package of £191,557 including renumeration and fees as elections returning officer as well as clerk to the Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Authority, a 21% increase on 2005/06

Recently retired deputy chief executive Frank Costello, who stepped down at Christmas received a 14% increase to give him a salary of £135,643, including election fees.

Director of finance David Smith received an 8.4% pay rise to £132,871 pa.

Director of adult services Bernard Walker received a 2.9% increase to £131,488

Former director of children and young people's services Ged Rowney's wage went up 6.8% to £126,995

Director of environmental services Martin Kimber received £117,019
Former executive director Bob Saunders received £110,174 including election fees

Director of legal services Susan Lowe was paid £107,007 including election fees.

The TPA, which publishes public sector salaries each year, claims the council executives are "too often" handsomely rewarded even when they fail.
But the Metro points out that senior officers at Wigan are responsible for managing a higher combined budget – £700m gross expenditure – than some FTSE 100 companies. And Wigan borough is consistently rated a top performer by independent experts.The council, with 10,500 employees, is also by far the largest employer in the borough.

The Alliance's chief executive Matthew Elliott said Wigan's 137,600 council tax payers had the right to know how much senior town hall officials were being paid.

A Metro spokesman said: "To attract the best and brightest people to deliver value for money you have to pay a competitive wage.
"When senior salaries in the private sector are compared to senior salaries in the public sector, the taxpayer gets good value for money.
"Wigan is one of a handful of councils in the country that has been consistently rated excellent or four star since the independent performance league tables were introduced over five years ago.

"The Audit Commission has reported that councils are delivering an ever better deal for taxpayers and local authorities already have the best track record on efficiency savings in the public sector."

The spokesman denied Mrs Redfearn had received a 21% increase. He said: "The figure for the 2005/6 salary they are basing it on wasn't a full year's salary. Joyce Redfearn only joined the council part way through that year, in May.

Preston Citizen: Chief exec is highest city council earner

By Andrew Greaves

A new report has revealed that Preston council chief executive Jim Carr earns more than £120,000 per year.

According to the Taxpayers' Alliance Town Hall Rich List 2008, compiled after a Freedom of Information request, Mr Carr is the highest earner at Preston City Council with £122,802, including car benefit of £12,453 and a payment of £4,750 for being the councils returning officer at elections.

But he is by not the highest council earner in the county.

Lancashire County Council chief executive, Chris Trinick, is the top earner with £188,677. He is due to be replaced this year by new chief Ged Fitzgerald who stands to earn £190,000 once he starts work.

No figures were included for South Ribble Borough Council.

The report, which lists all those earning more than £100,000 at local authorities across the country, has revealed that there are six people at Town Halls in England and Wales earning more than £200,000 per year, and 14 people earning more than the Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, who earns £188,849 including his MP's salary.

Matthew Elliott, chief executive of the TaxPayers' Alliance, 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."

Times of India: Raj and rants abroad too

Comparisons are odious, but here's some food for thought for public servants who feel done in by the mismatch between sarkari salaries and sky-rocketing corporate pay cheques. The scenario is no different in the US, but other incentives keep government employees going. The Brit babu, though, has undergone a makeover.

US: Executive excess

In September 2007, White House spokesman Tony Snow, a former Fox News correspondent, quit his government job to return to the private sector. Part of the reason was he had just been treated for cancer, but there was an underlying gripe for his exit: he couldn't support his family on his $168,000 per annum government salary.

Government jobs in the US pay modestly well ($100,000 to $200,000 for mid-to-high level civil servants), but nothing compared to what one can make in the private sector, where million-dollar salaries and bonuses are commonplace. At the highest level, President Bush earns a salary of $400,000 plus a $50,000 non-taxable expense allowance. By contrast, the average Standard & Poor's 500 company CEO took home $11.75 million in 2005.

The disparity is not as great across the board, but government service in the US is clearly not as lucrative as the private sector. More recently, undersecretary of state Nick Burns, who was the pointperson for the US-India nuclear deal, also left government to join the private sector, in part because he has three college-going daughters.

But one reason the US government still attracts talent is the sense of purpose - and grandeur that Snow talked about when he left: "There are lots of little things that happen on a regular daily basis here that I'm just gonna miss. Being able to walk over to the Oval Office and see the president or watch Marine One lift off (for instance)."

Of course, not everyone has that privilege, but for some, it's things like the omnibus health coverage and life insurance that matter. Government workers also get more paid time off than private sector employees. All federal employees receive 13 days of sick leave a year, which accrue indefinitely. They also earn 13 vacation days each of their first three years of service, 20 vacation days for their next 12 years, and 26 vacation days after their 15th year - time-outs unheard of in the private sector. Still, government service in the US is not considered the sinecure it is in India. When Snow left, a wicked blogger coined the following limerick to celebrate his exit:

Bush spokesman, ex-Foxer named Snow

Is quite ill and is planning to go.

Must be stressful to lie

Ev'ry day for that guy.

Why not do it for big network dough?

UK: Babus go hip

Back in the '80s, the satirical sitcom Yes Minister revealed the unsuspected power of the British babu when bumbling politician Jim Hacker told his smug civil servant Sir Humphrey: "In private industry if you screw things up you get the boot; in the civil service if you screw things up I get the boot."

The hapless Hacker got his laughs but Britain's self-perpetuating bureaucrat raj was no joke. It was the era of Thatcher and the civil service was monstrously engorged at 732,000 employees.

Fast forward to the noughties and Britain is run by just under 500,000 babus. That's still 100,000 more than 1990, when Thatcher left office after a bout of savage civil service downsizing.

But Labour, the party of big government's decade in Downing Street has allowed bureaucracy to thrive again. Albeit with a chameleon-like metamorphosis of the babu into New Age posts such as outreach workers, diversity co-ordinators, carbon reduction managers, racism awareness counsellors, policy advisers, liaison officers and anti-poverty managers. Some of these jobs come with six-figure salaries, along with benefits such as job security, 35-hour weeks, long holidays and guaranteed pensions. Most of them, according to one estimate, have an average annual pay ?10,000 higher than the mean private sector wage.

Matthew Sinclair of the Tax Payers' Alliance (TPA), a pressure group seeking to cut government spending, told STOI that high-flyer babudom remains a career aspiration for many young Britons.

A 2006 survey of 16,450 British graduates revealed the Civil Service Fast Stream was ranked number four in career choices, after PriceWaterhouse Cooper, Deloitte and KPMG. But TPA believes babu-raj is toxic and wasteful. Just weeks ago, it fulminated against Establishment reluctance to freeze recruitment for a decade, reducing babudom by one-quarter and saving taxpayers ?3.3 billion a year or ?130 per household. No one is holding their breath.

Daily Express: Rock boss in storm over £760k payoff

By David Pilditch

CRISIS-hit Northern Rock will be plunged into a new row today when it reveals its former boss Adam Applegarth got a £760,000 golden handshake.

It had been thought that Applegarth, 46, had walked away from the wreckage of the Rock with £380,000 - six months' wages.

But the bank's annual accounts to be published today will show his reward for failure was double that amount. He will also be able to draw a £200,000-a-year pension at 55.

Yesterday Liberal Democrat Treasury spokesman Vince Cable said: "It is an insult to the millions of Northern Rock customers, shareholders and employees who have suffered due to his incompetence.

"It is outrageous that someone who brought the bank to the brink of destruction and subjected taxpayers to liabilities worth billions of pounds should be rewarded for failure. It doesn't look good that the Government appears to be sanctioning payouts of this size to someone who played a big role in the bank's demise."

Matthew Sinclair, of the Taxpayers Alliance, said: "For the chief executive who led Northern Rock to this disaster to be so handsomely rewarded is absolutely shocking."

It comes days after it was announced that the Rock will shed a third of its workforce - more than 2,000 jobs over the next three years.

Graham Goddard, deputy general secretary of the union Unite said:

"Anyone whose actions contributed to the problems at the bank should not walk away with any reward. We want a full investigation into the bank's troubles."

Applegarth earned an estimated £6million in share deals, pay and bonuses in the last five years. He is said to have sold more than £2.6m -worth of shares at top prices. He also reportedly urged thousands of employees and investors to buy bank shares when the company was facing trouble.

Since leaving his job last December, Applegarth, who has two children, has been holed up in his £2.5 million mansion in the village of Matfen, near Newcastle upon Tyne.

He is also said to own a £250,000 flat on Newcastle's Quayside along with a fleet of high-performance cars including a £50,000 BMW X5, a £60,000 Range Rover and a £30,000 BMW 3 series.

Disgruntled investors have seen Northern Rock's value slump to less than a tenth of its £5.3billion stock market peak a year ago before its shares were suspended.

They have threatened to sue the Government unless it pays fair compensation for their shares.

Northern Echo: Councillors' parachute pay demand 'may go to Europe'

By Stuart Arnold

THE man spearheading a bid to win compensation on behalf of hundreds of councillors whose terms are being cut short by local Government re-organisation last night said the case could go to Europe.

Gateshead councillor Peter Mole, the general secretary of the National Association of Councillors, has written to John Healey, the Minister of State for Local Government, setting out his demands.

Coun Mole and his supporters, including the leader of Durham County Council Albert Nugent, believe that parachute payments should be made to councillors "mitigating the financial losses" they will face as a result of re-organisation.

Campaign group the Taxpayers' Alliance has criticised the move, describing it as a "shameful attempt to squeeze more money out of hard pressed taxpayers".

Last night Coun Mole said: "It the letter is with the minister now and I am hoping he will look favourably on it in some respects."

Asked what course of action could be taken should the Government - as expected - reject councillors' pleas - he said: "There needs to be some natural justice.

"We could look at the European Convention on Human Rights. There are other avenues open to us."

Re-organisation will mean that in County Durham, a single council will replace the two-tier system of seven district councils and a county council by April next year. Similar reforms will take place in Northumberland.

In Durham, the number of councillors will be cut from 375 to 126 with many members who have yet to serve their four-year term facing the exit door.

The Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) believes unitary authorities in Durham and Northumberland will save £20m and £15m respectively every year, But opponents fear it will in fact lead to a number of added costs for tax payers.

One concern is over the level of salary to be paid to new and serving senior managers in the new authority.

The new chief executive of the new authority in County Durham will receive £200,000 a year - at least £10,000 more than former Durham County Council chief executive Mark Lloyd.

A county council spokesman said the move to unitary status would still achieve very significant salary savings at chief officer grade since there would only be one council chief executive in the county instead of the current eight.

Mail on Sunday: Anger over £760,000 payoff for ex-Northern Rock boss who presided over bank's collapse

By BECKY BARROW

The former boss of stricken mortage lender Northern Rock is entitled to a £760,000 payoff despite the bank's collapse and rescue by the Government, its annual report reveals.

Adam Applegarth was the architect of the catastrophic business model that led to its problems last year and stepped down as chief executive in December.

But the nationalised lender's 2007 annual report reveals he could still receive £63,333 a month for up to a year under his severance deal.

The document also revealed the scale of Northern Rock's collapse last year as it struggled to fight off nationalisation.

It made a loss of £167.6 million during the year, in contrast to a £626.7 million profit the year before.

The first run on the bank since the 1860s led to a massive outflow of £12.2 billion in retail deposits over the 12 months, compared to inflows of £2.5 billion in 2006.

Customers flocked to take out their savings after the lender was forced to beg the Bank of England for emergency assistance.

Northern Rock, which is now under the chairmanship of City troubleshooter Ron Sandler, also said it pledged to repay £24 billion in Government loans by the end of 2010.

The annual report discloses that Mr Applegarth, 45, was entitled to a "termination payment" of £760,000 when he left on December 12 last year.

This is payable monthly until November 16 this year, but will be reduced if the former boss gets another job paying more than £20,000 in salary before that time.

It said Mr Applegarth's settlement terms were "substantially less" than the amount he was otherwise due when he left last year.

Northern Rock also agreed to contribute £5,000 plus VAT towards Mr Applegarth's legal fees, it was disclosed.

And £75,000 of his mortgage will continue to be charged at the concessionary staff interest rate until November.

The executive, who lives in a £2.5million home outside Newcastle with his wife and two sons, already has a pension fund worth at least £2.2million from which he can start drawing at 55.

Vince Cable, the Liberal Democrats' Treasury spokesman, said: "It is outrageous that someone who brought the bank to the brink of destruction and subjected taxpayers to liabilities worth billions of pounds should be rewarded for failure.

"It doesn't look good that the Government appears to be sanctioning payouts of this size to someone who played a big role in the bank's demise."

In 2006, the latest figures available, Mr Applegarth's total pay package was £ 1.4million, including a £660,000 bonus.

He is now rumoured to be circulating his CV to headhunters but the likelihood of him securing another top job is, at best, deemed remote.

One headhunter said: "It is fair to say that no one in the corporate world is going to thank you for appointing him to a business."

But with such a staggering payout and huge pension, Mr Applegarth, a cricket fanatic, is unlikely to need to work again.

Mr Applegarth's lucrative pay-off from the bank will be particularly galling to Northern Rock's workers.

About a third - roughly 2,000 - of them will lose their jobs by 2011, with the majority going this year, according to the bank's new management.

Graham Goddard, of the Unite union, said: "Those who contributed to the failure of Northern Rock must be held to account.

"Unite cannot accept that anyone whose actions contributed to the problems in the bank is able to walk away without any questions being asked of their conduct or any form of reward."

Mr Applegarth joined the Newcastle-based bank in 1982 after graduating from Durham University.

He rose to become chief executive in 2001, turning the former building society into the country's fifth-biggest mortgage lender. But, as he put it, "life changed on August 9" when the credit crunch started - and Northern Rock's funding crisis began.

In its annual report, the bank blamed its losses on exceptional costs related to the company's strategic review after the money markets froze last summer and ruined its business model, as well as writedowns on investments linked to the credit crunch.

But it said it had made an underlying pre-tax profit of £421.9 million after stripping out the effects of the non-recurring costs. This compares to £587.2 million a year earlier.

Bosses spent £51 million in administration fees alone as they tried to fight off collapse with a strategic review. Total one-off expenses for the second half of 2007 were £127.2 million.

The Government nationalised Northern Rock last month after rejecting takeover bids from the Virgin group and an in-house management team.

It now faces a "significantly" loss-making year due to further restructuring costs, higher funding bills and the deteriorating credit environment.

Last week City regulator the Financial Services Authority admitted to a catalogue of blunders in its dealings with Northern Rock.

But the FSA and the British Bankers' Association believe the ultimate responsibility lies with the bank's management.

In a veiled attack on Mr Applegarth, the BBA said: "No amount of regulation can ensure that wrong decisions are never made."

York Press: £100k-plus wages for council chiefs questioned

By Gavin Aitchison

COUNCIL chiefs in our region have defended the six-figure salaries paid to their top officers.

Local authority bosses came under fire after the Tax Payers' Alliance revealed 800 council officials nationwide were on more than £100,000 a year.

The list includes 11 officials in our region - one at City of York Council, five at North Yorkshire County Council and five at East Riding of Yorkshire Council.

The highest earner in our region is North Yorkshire chief executive John Marsden, who was on £163,545 in 2006/07 - up 24.2 per cent from the previous year.

In York, chief executive Bill McCarthy is on a performance-related pay scale, which will give him an annual salary of £130,000 to £145,000. His predecessor David Atkinson, who left the post last year, was on just under £118,000.

Simon Wiles, director of resources at City of York Council, said: "In setting the salary for the new chief executive of City of York Council, Bill McCarthy, who started with the council last October, we took into consideration the salaries paid to chief executives at other comparable unitary councils.

"We also took into consideration the roles and responsibilities that go with the job, given that it is in effect a 24/7 post, with a high public profile."

Mark Wallace, the TaxPayers' Alliance's campaigns director, said: "We are glad to see a system of performance-related pay being instituted, but it's very important that it genuinely is performance-related. We and tax payers will want to see details of how it is calculated and assessed. People should be able to link what is happening in their street with the pay decision made at city hall. That said, I think it is slim consolation for people to be told that it's performance-related when the minimum amount being paid has been increased so much."

A spokeswoman for North Yorkshire County Council said: "Despite being one of the largest local authorities in the country and being one of the most successful, with an excellent four-star rating, we continue to pay our senior managers at the middle of the range, compared with other authorities, many of which are significantly smaller.

"Chief officers, like the vast majority of council staff, are on an incremental pay scale with progression based on good performance."

A spokesman for East Riding of Yorkshire Council said: "The people who earn these salaries are responsible for multi-million pound budgets in a highly complex organisation and to attract the best and brightest people to deliver value for money you have to pay a suitable salary.

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

He said only a tiny proportion of the council's staff were on more than £100,000.

Highest paid council officials in our region

City of York Council

Bill McCarthy (chief executive): £130,000 - £145,000

North Yorkshire County Council

John Marsden (chief executive): £163,545

Derek Law (director of adult and community services): £119,017

Cynthia Wellbourne (director of children's services): £118,050

John Moore (director of finance and central services): £117,867

Gordon Gresty (director of business and environmental services): £117,596

East Riding of Yorkshire:

Nigel Pearson (chief executive): £156,107

Sue Lockwood (director of corporate resources): £112,948

Barry Adams (director of corporate policy and strategy): £112,921

Hugh Roberts: (director of customer services): £112,290

Alison Waller (director of children, family and adult services): £102,229

All salaries are for as in the financial year 2006/07, except Bill McCarthy's which is for 2007/08

Inthenews.co.uk: Redecoration of speaker's official home costs £1.7 million

The official residence of the speaker of the House of Commons has been redecorated at a cost to the taxpayer of £1.7 million, according to official statistics.

Details of the costs of refurbishing the home of speaker Michael Martin obtained by the Daily Telegraph under the Freedom of Information Act showed that £700,000 had been spent on internal works including the purchase of furniture and the installation of air conditioning.

An additional £1 million was also spent on improving the speaker's garden, which involved work to improve security measures in light of the 9/11 attacks

Mr Martin has filed a High Court appeal to prevent MPs expenses from being made public. This comes after a scandal over his use of air miles acquired during business for personal purposes and on the heels of Tory MP Derek Conway being suspended from parliament for ten days after employing his son as a researcher and paying him over £40,000 even though little evidence of work could be produced.

The scandals have led to growing calls for MPs expenses to be revealed and supporters of the move have criticised the amounts spent on renovating the speaker's official home, which is often used to entertain dignitaries

Former MP and anti-sleaze campaigner Martin Bell said: "I'm shocked but not surprised. The speaker should be setting a good example and he is not - MPs have got to get their palace in order.

"We are close to a state of constitutional crisis. You run out of words in the end to describe his behaviour."

Non-government organisation The TaxPayers' Alliance also slammed the discovery saying it was incorrect to spend such "stupendous sums" on a single residence.

The organisation's campaign director, Mark Wallace, said: "The speaker is well paid and receives generous allowances as well as a free house, so it is excessive for him to be billing so heavily for furniture, art and cooling systems."

Glasgow Daily Record: £700k bill to tart up Commons Speaker's free home

By Daniel Bentley

COMMONS Speaker Michael Martin's London home has had more than £700,000 spent on it since he moved in, it was revealed last night.

The cash went on items such as furniture, art and air conditioning for the grace and favour official residence.

An additional £992,000 was spent on Speaker's Garden, although most of that went on improving security in the wake of 9/11.

The spending spree was revealed last night as he faced pressure over his review of MPs' expenses.

Martin, Labour MP for Glasgow North East, was elected Speaker in 2000.

Figures released under the Freedom of Information Act show that since 2001, £724,000 has been spent on Speaker's House, which includes the State Rooms of the Palace of Westminster.

Of that, £148,900 was spent on furniture, £191,000 on new air conditioning, £13,000 on works of art and £291,000 on "restoration and refurbishment".

Former independent MP and anti-sleaze campaigner Martin Bell was "shocked" by the figures.

He said: "The Speaker should be setting a good example and he is not.

"MPs have got to get their palace in order.

"We are close to a state of constitutional crisis. You run out of words in the end to describe his behaviour."

TaxPayers' Alliance campaign director Mark Wallace said the disclosure proved Martin was the wrong person to be heading a review of MPs' expenses.

He added: "These are stupendous sums.

"The Speaker is well paid and receives generous allowances as well as a free house, so it is excessive for him to be billing so heavily for furniture, art and cooling systems."

Martin's spokeswoman said the house included more than just his apartment and the spending was part of an improvements programme commissioned by the Parliamentary Estates Directorate.

She said: "Entertainment of visiting heads of state, parliamentarians and others take place in the State Apartments and the costs listed reflect environmental and heritage requirements and health and safety legislation."

Martin has already come under fire for claiming second-home allowance of more than £75,000 on his Glasgow property, for which he has no mortgage.

His wife Mary has also claimed thousands in taxi expenses. The disclosure sparked a row that led Martin's then spokesman, Mike Granatt, to quit.

In the last week, the Commons Commission - which the Speaker chairs - has faced criticism from MPs for launching a High Court appeal to block the release of details of MPs' second-home claims.

Former sheet metal worker Martin, who earns £138,000 a year, has barred MPs from talking about the appeal in the Commons.

Doncaster Star: 'Fat cats' in pay storm

By Martin Herron
DONCASTER Council was today at the centre of a fat-cat pay row after it emerged the authority jointly tops the South Yorkshire bosses pay league.
The authority pays five of its senior officers more than £100,000 - the same as Sheffield which has a larger population - according to figures released by the Taxpayers Alliance.

Until last year there were six in the borough on more than £100,000, but one of the posts was lost in a recent reorganisation.

No figures were available for Rotherham, but only two staff earn six figure salaries in neighbouring Barnsley.

According to the TA's figures, the £100,000 plus posts include that of managing director, currently held by Paul Hart, which in the year 2006-07 was worth £141,574. The strategic director neighbourhoods, communities and children's services was paid £106,179.

There were also three posts worth £103, 456 per year - strategic director for development; strategic director for organisation development and culture; and strategic director for policy, partnership and governance.Until last year there was a sixth post paid at over £100,000 - specialist director educational standards - but the post was deleted last April.

Councillor Tony Brown, the deputy leader of the Alliance of Independent Members, said: "Recently released figures show that the average wage in Doncaster has decreased by around £30 in the last year and the town still has one of the highest rates of people on benefits in the whole country.

"The fact that we've had more high earners on the council payroll than Sheffield really doesn't make sense to me.

"Of course you could argue that you have to pay these sorts of salaries to get the right people for the job - but in the case of these jobs I don't think the performance we're getting merits the huge wage."

Doncaster Council today defended its pay policy.

Kay Leigh, Director for Human Resources and Organisational Development said: "Doncaster's residents deserve the highest calibre of senior staff and to recruit and retain suitably qualified and experienced candidates to the biggest metropolitan borough in England, salaries of this level are necessary."

BBC News Online: Speaker's residence bill revealed

Over £700,000 of public money has been spent on the Commons Speaker's official residence since 2001, figures show.

A Freedom of Information request by the Daily Telegraph revealed that over £100,000 a year was spent on furniture, art and air-conditioning.

Speaker Michael Martin's spokeswoman said the improvements were necessary.

Mr Martin has been criticised after his family used air miles from official flights, and his wife claimed cab fares for shopping trips.

'Free house'

The figures show that £148,900 has been spent on furniture, £13,000 on art, £191,000 on installing a new air-conditioning system, and £291,000 on "building restoration and refurbishment".

  The Speaker should be setting a good example and he is not

Martin Bell
Former independent MP

A further £992,000 has been spent on the Speaker's garden - although most of those costs are part of the effort to improve security in the Palace of Westminster since the 11 September 2001 attacks.

Former independent MP Martin Bell said he was "shocked" by the sums involved.

"The Speaker should be setting a good example and he is not - MPs have got to get their palace in order," he said.

Mark Wallace, campaign director of the TaxPayers' Alliance, said the figures were "stupendous".

"The Speaker is well paid and receives generous allowances as well as a free house, so it is excessive for him to be billing so heavily for furniture, art and cooling systems."

The revelations come as Michael Martin carries out a review into MPs' expenses, due to report in the autumn.

But his own expenses have been the subject of scrutiny and his spokesman, Mike Granatt, resigned in February after he wrongly rebutted some parts of a story claiming that the Speaker's wife had claimed more than £4,000 in taxi expenses since May 2004.

Mr Martin's spokeswoman said the spending on Speaker's House was part of a rolling programme of improvements.

She added that the property was used for entertaining heads of state and needed to be maintained as part of Britain's heritage.

"Speaker's House is the official residence of the Speaker," she said.

"Entertainment of visiting heads of state, parliamentarians and others take place in the State Apartments and the costs listed reflect environmental and heritage requirements and health and safety legislation."

Bedfordshire on Sunday: Council tightlipped on questions about 100k employees

Bedfordshire taxpayers have been paying three highranked council officials more than 100,000 a year.

The figure could be higher but Bedford Borough Council refused to answer a Freedom of Information (FOI) request that was submitted by the Taxpayers Alliance to discover the country's highest Town Hall earners.

Matthew Elliott, chief executive of the TaxPayers Alliance, said: "Taxpayers have a right to know how much senior council officials are being paid because only then can we judge whether they deserve it.

"Too often, council executives are rewarded handsomely even when they fail.

Families are struggling with the demands of yet another council tax rise, and councils owe it to them to cut back on executive pay hikes."

Bedfordshire County Council and Mid Bedfordshire District Council (MBDC) did reveal who their highest paid employees are with the county council reducing their numbers from five people earning over 100,000 in 2005/6 to two in 2006/7.

County council chief executive Andrea Hill was the top earner with a wage packet of 163,353 which included essential car user allowance of 1,749.96 and other allowances of 9,999.96 for her 37 hour week.

The FOI request also revealed that director of children's services Malcolm Newsam earned 124,063 but previous top earners David Doran (105,682), Jonathan Flowers (116,750) and Tim Malynn (103,727) no longer work for the council.

MBDC chief executive Jaki Salisbury was paid 113,206 in 2005/6 but saw her wage reduced by 2.2 per cent to 110,679 in 2006/7.

A borough council spokesman said: " We are exempt from providing details of a personal nature about individual officers as this would be a breach of data protection legislation.

"However, we were happy to provide banded figures for the total remuneration of senior council staff without personal data, information which is freely available in the council's statement of accounts."

Sunday Mercury: GOLDEN HAND CUFS

BY BEN GOLDBY

EXCLUSIVE Now lags are told how to cash in by claiming back thousands in tax

CONVICTED crooks forced to quit their jobs to serve time in prison are claiming bumper tax refunds to soften the blow.

A loophole in the law means any criminals, including robbers, rapists and murderers, who were working before they were imprisoned, can claim back tax on their earnings.

Several lags have already exploited the extraordinary rules, cashing in thousands of pounds in the process.

But campaigners against unfair levies said the loophole is hitting the pockets of honest workers, who are already paying for the lags to do time.

Exploit

Fiona McEvoy, from the Taxpayers' Alliance, said: "It is quite unbelievable that prisoners are able to exploit the system whilst ordinary taxpayers receive little reprieve from the mounting burden of taxation. These people should be paying their debt to society, rather than seeking to reimburse themselves at its cost".

One inmate has now published advice in lags' magazine Inside Time, from his cell at Littlehey Prison, to tell other cons how they can profit from their incarceration.

He wrote: "I found out to my good fortune that because I was in fulltime employment up until entering custody, I was owed money from the Inland Revenue.

"I contacted them, stating when my last day of employment was and that I would like to bring my tax affairs up to date, and some time after received a repayment of £1,100.

"As far as I can gather, if you are in a job which earns you overtime or benefits in kind, such as a company car or healthcare, your tax is deducted on the assumption that it will be over a full tax year. The onus is on you to claim it back - unlike if you owe them.

"I have helped numerous inmates claim such monies, which only costs the price of a stamp.

"There is no certainty you will be owed money but it is definitely worth a try. Applications should be made to the tax office dealing with your former employer, not necessarily the one local to your home address.

"I would like to think that anyone owed money would chance a stamp and enjoy a possible windfall as a result."

A spokeswoman for HM Revenue & Customs last night confirmed that lags could claim back their taxes and urged anyone who thought they were owed cash to contact them.

She said: "Any UK taxpayer who has paid too much tax is eligible to apply for a repayment. If anyone thinks they have paid too much tax, they should contact their local tax office."

A string of Midland criminals are in line for big refunds under the extraordinary rules.

Addicts

Meanwhile figures revealed this week have shown a further increase in the compensation culture at Midland prisons.

Drug-addicts forced to go "cold turkey" at Shrewsbury Prison received compensation payments totalling £38,071 in the past year, according to government statistics.

The Sunday Mercury revealed earlier this month how prisoners were told how to rake in extra cash by being allowed to open high street bank accounts to rake in interest payments.

Independent on Sunday: Speaker under renewed scrutiny

By Brian Brady and Jane Merrick

Allies of Commons speaker Michael Martin rallied to his defence yesterday as he came under renewed scrutiny over the amounts of taxpayers' money used to refurbish his official residence. Anti-sleaze campaigners returned to the attack on Mr Martin after it emerged £1.7m had been spent on refurbishing his home and garden since 2001.

Details of the expenditure were revealed days after the Speaker lodged a High Court appeal to block the release of a controversial list of MPs' expenses.

Mr Martin has been criticised after his family used air miles from official flights, and his wife claimed cab fares for shopping trips.

Former independent MP Martin Bell claimed Mr Martin was not "setting a good example", while the TaxPayers' Alliance said the latest disclosures proved he was the wrong person to be heading a review of MPs' expenses.

But a senior government source dismissed the latest revelations as part of an ongoing campaign to destabilise Mr Martin and insisted his position was safe.

Plymouth Evening Herald: Council supremo on new 'rich list'

Plymouth City Council's chief executive has been named on a "town hall rich list" as one of the highest earning people in UK local government.

Barry Keel earned £168,216 in the 2006-7 financial year, making him the best paid council official in Devon or Cornwall, according to a new survey.

Campaign group The Taxpayers' Alliance used the Freedom of Information Act to produce a list of the 818 council employees earning more than £100,000.

Six people in town halls earn more than £200,000 a year, while 88 earn more than £150,000.

The list also features two other Plymouth City Council employees - director of children's services Bronwen Lacey on £127,416, and director of community services Clive Turner, who earns £112,715.

Mark Wallace, campaign director for The Taxpayers' Alliance, said: "Plymouth taxpayers work very hard to foot the bill for record council tax claims. For families and pensioners in particular, who are feeling the pinch of high taxes, those high salaries are particularly galling.

"No-one minds paying a good wage for good work, but a lot of people will question whether Plymouth services are good enough to merit these pay packets."

A spokesman for Plymouth city council said: "Plymouth City Council has an annual budget of more than half a billion pounds, a workforce of more than 14,000 and a wide range of statutory duties and responsibilities that affect the lives of 250,000 people.

"Salaries of those leading private businesses of this size tend to be much higher.

"If local government is to attract and retain the right calibre of people to lead large and complex organisations at times of great change, it needs to pay appropriate salaries."

She said Plymouth City Council had seen very significant improvements in its performance over the last few years.

The alliance's town hall rich list also showed Devon County Council chief executive Phil Norrey earns £150,000, and

Cornwall County Council chief executive Sheila Healy gets £124,483.

South Wales Evening Post: Town hall fat cat pay under fire

Carmarthenshire Council chief executive Mark James earns more than a Government cabinet minister according to new figures published by the Taxpayers' Alliance (TPA).

Mr James earned £148,867 between 2006 and 2007, which is £10,000 more than the £137,000 a cabinet minister earns.

And according the TPA's Rich List, Mr James's salary is only around 20 per cent less than Prime Minister Gordon Brown's salary of £189,994.

Figures also reveal that Mr James was awarded a 10.5 per cent (£14,165) pay rise from his 2005/2006 salary of £134,702.

The Taxpayers' Alliance said its study found that average pay rises were 4.6 per cent, whereas the prime minister has demanded a two per cent salary cap.

Mr James's rise was five times the suggested cap percentage.

Matthew Elliott, TPA chief executive 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."

Also highlighted in the rich list are the earnings of Carmarthenshire Council directors.

Dave Gilbert, director of regeneration of leisure; Bruce McLernon, director of social care and housing; Vernon Morgan, director of education, Richard Workman, director of technical services and Roger Jones, director of resources, all earned more than £100,000 a year and collectively picked up £687,388.

The findings have shocked ratepayer representatives.

Tessa Finch, chairwoman of Carmarthenshire Ratepayers' Association said: "It beggars belief that our councillors, sitting on the council of one of the poorest counties in the UK, can award such massive increases to already grossly overpaid executives.

"How could they possibly have found them justifiable?

"There is nothing about the executives' performances that justifies even their 2005 / 2006 salaries, let alone the inflation-busting increase awarded to the chief executive."

The figures also show that Carmarthenshire beats near rivals Swansea and Neath Port Talbot Councils for highly paid execs.

In Swansea Council, only former chief executive Tim Thorogood earned more than a cabinet minister, with £167,156 in 2005/2006.

However, that included a pay-off of around £60,000.

In Neath Port Talbot, chief executive Ken Sawyers picked up around £125,000 and an unnamed department head was paid £115,000.

A Carmarthenshire Council spokesman said that salaries of senior officers were set by the executive board of the council.

An element of that salary is paid dependent on performance in delivering targets, the spokesman added.

He added: "Carmarthenshire Council has reduced the number of director posts by 15 per cent, and the number of head of service posts by more than 30 per cent since 2003, saving nearly £1 million each year on its salaries bill.

"Evidence of council success in recent years can be seen all around the county.

"To do this, the council needs first-class officers and is prepared to pay the going rate to attract and keep them."

Leicester Mercury: 'Fat cat' council officers on huge salaries revealed

by Jenny Cornish

Fourteen council officers in Leicestershire were paid more than £100,000 last year, according to new figures.

Campaign group the Taxpayers' Alliance has released a list of what it called town hall "fat cats".

The highest paid officer in the county was Rodney Green, former chief executive of Leicester City Council.

He received £166,936, but retired earlier this year with a package worth just over £500,000.

Across the country, 818 council officers were paid more than £100,000, up by a quarter from the year before.

The Taxpayers' Alliance said such high pay deals were not acceptable - but councils have defended the salaries and said they had to pay to get good staff.

Councillor Ross Willmott, leader of Leicester City Council, said: "I am quite comfortable with the salary levels of our most senior employees.

"Councils such as Leicester have social and financial responsibilities that far outweigh most of those in the private sector and yet the salaries we pay are often below those paid in that sector for such important jobs.

"If we are to run our councils effectively, then we must offer salaries that will attract the very best people to the most responsible jobs."

A spokesman for Leicestershire County Council, which has eight officers on more than £100,000, said: "There is no indication that the Taxpayers' Alliance understands the roles and responsibilities of local authorities.

"The county council is a multi-million pound business providing a range of important public services.

"It is rated independently as jointly the highest performing council in England and with a particularly strong track record in efficiency savings to benefit the taxpayer.

"Salaries need to be competitive in the market place to recruit and retain high-quality senior managers."

Alliance chief executive, Matthew Elliott, said: "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 hikes."

The best paid on the list was Northamptonshire's chief executive Peter Gould, who earned £215,000 in 2006/07.

He retired last May.

Gloucestershire Echo: £100,000 a year - are they worth it?

Council chiefs in Gloucestershire have been named as some of the biggest earners among England's local authorities.

A report by the Taxpayers' Alliance, known as The Town Hall Rich List, puts two of the county's chief executives on a salary exceeding £100,000.

The county's biggest local government earner is Peter Bungard, chief executive of Gloucestershire County Council, who is paid £153,579.

Cheltenham Borough Council boss Andrew North is on a salary of £105,498.

But Tewkesbury Borough Council and Cotswold District Council refused to reveal how much its chief executive, Bob Austin, earns.

The alliance published the salaries of more than 450 local authorities across the country after making Freedom of Information requests.

Mr Bungard said if the council was in the private sector his salary would be a lot higher.

"While this may seem a lot, so is the scope of the job," he said.

"Leading a large council is a partnership between politicians and senior officers, responsible for nearly £800 million turnover, 17,000 staff, indeed the county's biggest employer, and the delivery of a huge range of services - more than 300 schools, 3,000 miles of road and up to 50 other services.

"Many people, like myself, work in the public sector because they believe in it and want to make a contribution to the community they live in.

"To attract people to public sector leadership roles, the salaries have to reflect the responsibility we are asking people to take on."

Research by the alliance showed six people in local authorities across the country earn more than £200,000 and 14 officials earn more than the Prime Minister, who makes £188,849 including his MP's salary.

According to data from the Institute of Directors, a managing director in a large company with a turnover of more than £50 million can expect to earn more than £141,000.

Cheltenham Borough Council chief executive Andrew North was happy to divulge his salary.

He said: "I do the job because I enjoy it and I took a salary cut to come to Cheltenham Borough Council.

"I was previously deputy chief executive of a county council and was earning more then than I do now as the chief executive of a borough council.

"In terms of the responsibility of the post, the borough chief executives are undervalued compared with the county councils.

"Essentially salaries are determined by the market. Being a chief executive has a number of different aspects to it, including dealing with emergencies, managing infrastructure and maintaining an interface with politicians.

"As the head of paid service I take responsibility for 1,000 or so staff.

"It's a bit like the job of top people in business. A local authority will quite often be prepared to pay for the best people to come and work for them."

Mr North said the public "absolutely" had a right to know how much he and other public servants earn.

He said: "We're paid through public money, some from the Government and some from the taxpayer.

"We need to be open about a whole range of information and that includes salaries."

Tewkesbury Borough Council said it had no £100,000-plus earners but wouldn't divulge information of the chief executive's salary.

Former chief executive Teri Turner received a £75,000 pay off when she took early retirement in May last year.

She was replaced by Bob Austin in a job-share with Cotswold District Council - a move the authority said would save £46,000 a year.

Cotswold District Council also refused to give salary details.

The post of chief executive for Gloucester City Council was advertised at £110,000 prior to Julian Wain's appointment last April.

A spokesman for Stroud District Council said information about chief executive David Hagg's salary would not be given out, but that no salaries within the authority exceeded £100,000.

Liverpool Echo: £700,000 spend for Speaker

THE official residence of Commons Speaker Michael Martin has had £700,000 spent on it since he took the job.

More than £100,000 a year was spent on items including furniture, art and air conditioning for the Grade I-listed apartments.

The figures were released under the Freedom of Information Act and came as the Speaker was under intense pressure over MPs' expenses.

In total, £724,000 has been spent on the residence - which also includes the State Rooms of the Palace of Westminster - since 2001.

Mr Martin was elected Speaker in October 2000.

Mark Wallace, campaign director of the TaxPayers' Alliance, said the disclosure proved Mr Martin was the wrong person to lead a review of MPs' expenses.

Mr Martin's spokeswoman said: "Entertainment of visiting heads of state, Parliamentarians and others take place in the State Apartments and the costs listed reflect environmental and heritage requirements and health and safety legislation."

Daily Telegraph: Speaker's home gets £ 1.7 million makeover

By Rachel Sylvester and Robert Winnett

REFURBISHING the home and garden of the Speaker of the House of Commons has cost the taxpayer £ 1.7 million.

The bill includes more than £ 700,000 on furnishing and improving his official residence, figures released to The Daily Telegraph reveal today.

The disclosure that more than £ 100,000 a year has been spent on furniture, art and refurbishments will add to intense pressure on Michael Martin who is leading controversial attempts to block the disclosure of MPs' expenses.

Information released under freedom of information laws shows that since 2001, £ 148,900 has been spent on furniture for Speakers House; £ 191,000 on a new air-conditioning system; £ 13,000 on art and £ 291,000 on "building restoration and refurbishment''.

In total, taxpayers have spent £ 724,600 on the residence since Mr Martin, 62, became Speaker in October 2000. A further £ 992,000 has been spent on the Speaker's garden although most of this work has been to improve security.

The total expenditure on Mr Martin's residence is therefore more than £ 1.7 million.

The lavish programme -which is even more costly than the controversial redecoration of the official residence of Lord Irvine,

the former lord chancellor - follows a series of other questions about Mr Martin's use of lavish taxpayer-funded perks.

Last night, anti-sleaze campaigners said the latest disclosure would add to growing pressure on Mr Martin to step down. Martin Bell, the former BBC broadcaster elected as an

MP to fight sleaze in 1997, said: "I'm shocked but not surprised. The Speaker should be setting a good example and he is not. MPs have got to get their palace in order. We are close to a state of constitutional crisis.''

Norman Baker, a Liberal Democrat MP, said: "This is obviously a lot of money. It is important the Speaker's residence is maintained but all of us have a duty to ensure that public money is well spent.''

Mark Wallace, the campaign director of the TaxPayers' Alliance, said: "These are stupendous sums to spend on just one residence.

"The Speaker is well paid and receives generous allowances as well as a free house, so it is excessive for him to be billing so heavily for furniture, art and cooling systems.

"This is compelling evidence that Michael Martin is a completely inappropriate person to oversee MPs' expenses - he enjoys the high life all too much himself.''

Speaker's House, which is situated under Big Ben in the Palace of Westminster, is regarded as one of Britain's most opulent taxpayer-funded residences.

Officials disclosed yesterday there are also plans to redecorate the Speaker's study and state rooms and restore the upholstery.

A spokesman for the Speaker refused to provide a full breakdown of the cost of the refurbishment.

However, she said it was ordered by the Parliamentary Estates Directorate, which oversees work throughout Parliament.

Earlier this year it emerged that Mr Martin had used Air Miles gained at public expense to fund business-class flights for his relatives.

Mr Martin, who is paid £ 138,724, has also refused to give up rights to one of the most generous pension schemes in the country. He will receive half his salary as a pension until he dies.

Similar schemes were previously available to the Prime Minister and Lord Chancellor but have been scrapped

Western Mail: Most council chiefs now earning over £100,000

FIFTEEN of Wales' 22 councils are paying their chief executives more than £100,000, prompting outrage from low-tax campaigners.

The data, released under the Freedom of Information Act, suggests Cardiff chief executive Byron Davies is the top earner on £151,186.

Carmarthenshire boss Mark James is on£148,867 while Merthyr Tydfil chief executive Alistair Neill was paid £131,476.

Comparisons will be drawn with the Prime Minister's salary of £188,000 - which is exceeded by several chief executives running English councils.

Five Welsh councils declined to supply data when it was requested by lobby group the Taxpayers' Alliance, while two, Blaenau Gwent and Ynys Mon, paid their bosses less than £100,000.

Steve Thomas, chief executive of the Welsh Local Government Association, said, "The naming of individuals by the Taxpayers' Alliance needs to be taken with a considerable health warning. The report is not only out of date but in some parts completely inaccurate.

"Welsh councils are responsible for ensuring that billions of pounds worth of taxpayers' money is spent wisely. They are among the biggest employers in Wales delivering over 730 everyday services that local people rely upon including education, social services housing, refuse collection, trading standards and leisure facilities."

The salaries offered good value for money when compared to those in the private sector, he said.

But the Taxpayers Alliance said the figures highlighted a culture of rewarding failure in local government.

"Too often, council executives are rewarded handsomely even when they fail," said Matthew Elliott from the Taxpayers' Alliance.

"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 hikes."

The best-paid council boss in the UK was Northamptonshire's chief executive Peter Gould, who was paid £215,000 in 2006-07. He retired last May.

Northern Echo: Council leader joins row over high-paid executives

By Stuart Arnold

A COUNCIL leader has spoken out over a local authority pay row by criticising highly paid chief executives and referring to "people that run around after the highest salaries".

Councillor George Dunning, the leader of the ruling Labour party on Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council, hit out at a previous administration in charge of the council responsible for increasing the pay given to its senior officers.

Coun Dunning spoke out after the publication of a Town Hall Rich List by the Taxpayers' Alliance which revealed that a record number of North-East council officers earned more than £100,000-a-year in 2006-7.

In Redcar, seven officers broke this limit, which Coun Dunning said was the result of decisions taken by a previous Liberal Democrat-Conservative-Independent coalition which took office in 2003, before losing control in May last year. He said: "My personal view on the fact that the coalition has left the new Labour administration with a legacy of the highest group of officers in the North-East on salaries over a £100,000 shows that the coalition knew nothing about the people of Redcar and Cleveland's feelings towards very high officers' salaries, hence they voted the coalition out.

"There are some local authority chiefs getting more than our Prime Minister and that cannot be correct.

"Having been a steel worker, working with people who work their socks off in difficult conditions to get a living wage, makes these salaries look like winning the Lottery.

"In Redcar and Cleveland, we want the best people for the job and who want to work for us, and not people that run around after the highest salaries."

Three of those included in the list have since left the council, including chief executive Colin Moore, who earned £151,282 in 2006-7.

Councillor Chris Abbott, leader of the Lib Dem group on the council, said the council officers in question had justified their increasing salaries.

He said: "The council has only paid peanuts in the past and could not attract the top staff and as a result it showed in its performance.

"By paying the going rate for the job it means you get the best people."

Referring to Mr Moore, he said:

"As a chief executive, he has been brilliant. He saved the council £30m on the deal he got for us on equal pay."

Meanwhile, Durham County Council said three of its senior officers who were included on the list had also left, and not been replaced.

The authority confirmed that prior to his leaving, chief executive Mark Lloyd, who is due to take up a new role with Cambridgeshire County Council next month, had a salary range of between £151,000 and £190,000.

A spokesman said: "To attract the best and brightest people to deliver value for money it is essential to pay a suitable wage."

Independent: Speaker spent more than £700,000 on his Commons residence

By Colin Brown Deputy Political Editor

The Speaker of the Commons, Michael Martin, has been criticised over improvements to his grace and favour flat in the House of Commons, which have cost the taxpayer more than £700,000.

A total of £148,900 was spent on furniture, £191,000 on a new air-conditioning system, £13,000 on art and £291,000 on "building restoration and refurbishment" in Speaker's House.

In total, £724,000 has been spent on the residence - which also includes the State Rooms of the Palace of Westminster - since 2001, according to the figure released under the Freedom of Information rules.

More than £100,000 a year has been spent on average on items including furniture, art and air conditioning for the Grade 1-listed apartments.

The Speaker, who was elected in 2000, chairs a commission which is currently resisting demands for the details of 14 senior politicians, including Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Opposition leader David Cameron, to be disclosed.

Mr Martin's spokeswoman said the spending was part of a rolling programme of improvements which were commissioned by the Parliamentary Estates Directorate.

She stressed that the House included more than just Mr Martin's grace and favour apartment.

She said: "Speaker's House is the official residence of the Speaker.

"Entertainment of visiting heads of state, Parliamentarians and others take place in the State apartments and the costs listed reflect environmental and heritage requirements and health and safety legislation."

The Speaker has already come under fire for claiming more than £75,000 of second homes allowance on his Glasgow property, for which he has no mortgage. His wife has claimed thousands of pounds in expenses for taxis, the disclosure of which led to a row which caused Mr Martin's previous spokesperson, Mike Granatt, to quit.

In the last week, the House of Commons Commission - which the Speaker chairs - has faced criticism from MPs for launching a High Court appeal against the release of a detailed breakdown of MPs' second home claims.

Mr Martin has barred MPs from talking about the legal bid in the Commons.

Mark Wallace, campaign director of the TaxPayers' Alliance, said the disclosure proved that Mr Martin was the wrong person to be heading a review of MPs' expenses.

He said: "These are stupendous sums to spend on just one residence."

Daily Express: Pupils on a £3,000 outing to brothels

By Cyril Dixon

A SCHOOL trip to Amsterdam's red light district was condemned last night.

The 20-strong party of pupils aged 14 to 16 will be taken round the streets where scantily-clad prostitutes lounge in windows.

They will also visit the "cannabis college" information centre, which promotes the drug and boasts about its "beautiful" marijuana plants.

Education officials claim the children will learn how different countries tackle problems such as drink and drug abuse and sexually-transmitted diseases.

But the scheme for youngsters at the Helena Romanes School in Great Dunmow, Essex, which will cost the county council £3,000, was condemned as a waste of public money which could lead impressionable teenagers astray.

Nick Seaton, director of the Campaign for Real Education, said: "It is ridiculous and an abuse of taxpayers' money. People of this age are much too young to be exposed to this kind of thing. It won't educate them – it will do the reverse." Matthew Elliott, of the TaxPayers' Alliance, agreed: "This is a ludicrous waste of money. More than 40 per cent of children at the school don't get 5 A-C grades at GCSE – a trip to look at brothels is not going to improve that."

Daily Express: Speaker runs up £700,000 bill

THE official residence of Commons Speaker Michael Martin has been improved at a cost of over £700,000 since he took the job.

More than £100,000 a year was spent on average for the Grade 1-listed apartments, according to figures released under the Freedom of Information Act.

The figures show £148,900 was spent on furniture, £191,000 on new air-conditioning, £13,000 on art and £291,000 on building restoration and refurbishment. Mr Martin is already under pressure over MPs' expenses and has come under fire for claiming more than £75,000 in second homes allowance on his Glasgow property, for which he has no mortgage.

Mark Wallace, campaign director of the TaxPayers' Alliance, said the disclosure proved Mr Martin was the wrong person to be heading a review of MPs' expenses.

He said: "These are stupendous sums to spend on just one residence. The Speaker is well paid and receives generous allowances as well as a free house, so it is excessive for him to be billing so heavily for furniture, art and cooling systems." Mr Martin's spokeswoman said it was part of a rolling programme commissioned by the Parliamentary Estates Directorate.

The House of Commons Commission – which the Speaker chairs – has faced criticism over a High Court appeal against the release of a detailed breakdown of MPs' second home claims.

Newcastle Journal: Tons up at town hall

by William Green Political Editor

Campaigners rap £100,000 bosses

TOP ranking town hall chiefs in the North earning more than £100,000 have been attacked by a campaign group as families face hikes in council tax.

The TaxPayers Alliance said more than £3.8m was claimed by council chiefs in 2006-07 as remuneration deals - including pay, bonuses and benefits - rose by up to 4.5% on the year before.

And the amount could be higher as campaigners claimed they were unable to get information from several authorities as they drew up a town hall "rich list" using Freedom of Information regulations.

Sunderland City Council chief executive Ged Fitzgerald was recorded as having the highest package in the region of £174,156, including £11,739 car benefit, last year compared to £170,036 in the previous 12 months.

Two other staff at Sunderland were on more than £100,000, there were two each at North Tyneside and South Tyneside, and one at both Tynedale and Blyth Valley.

The former boss of Durham County Council, Mark Lloyd, had a package that amounted to £141,000 with five other staff also claiming more than £100,000 between 2005-07.

Northumberland chief executive Mark Henderson's remuneration totalled £149,736 in 2006-07, while four other senior staff also had packages above £100,000.

Nationally, the average package for 818 bosses topped £120,000 - nearly five times the starting wage of a police constable. Northamptonshire's ex-chief executive Peter Gould was the best paid on £215,000 in 2006-07, while 14 earned more than the Prime Minister's £188,000 annual salary and six received more than £200,000.

The report came as the Conservatives claimed the average band D council tax bill has risen in the region from £782 in 1997-98 to £1,429 in 2008-09.

But the Local Government Association said the findings should be taken with "an immense dollop of salt" and claimed some of the data was inaccurate.

TaxPayers' Alliance chief executive Matthew Elliott said: "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 hikes." Northumberland County Council said recruiting high-quality senior officers was vital to ensure high service standards, which meant providing "attractive" salaries in line with local government guidelines.

Sunderland council leader Bob Symondssaid it had a budget of over £760m and delivered more than 700 services to 280,000 residents.

He added: "Its achievements in delivering these services with staff led by the chief executive and the other senior officers mentioned in this release, have again this year earned the city council a Four Star rating from central government with that Sunderland council taxpayers currently pay the lowest council tax in Tyne and Wear and the whole of the North East."

Durham County Council said three of the six people mentioned in the report had left the authority and not been replaced.

A spokesman said: "People on this level of salary are the most senior officers who are directly responsible for multi-million pound budgets in a highly complex organisation and in what is the largest local authority in the North East.

"To attract the best and brightest people to deliver value for money you have to pay a suitable wage.

"It is by employing people of this calibre that the county council has been able to gain and, for the last four years maintain, its highest possible Audit Commission rating as one of the best councils in the entire country."

The TaxPayers Alliance said councils in Newcastle, Gateshead and Chester-le-Street, refused to take part in its survey.

Councils with no one earning above £100,000 included Alnwick, Berwick, Castle Morpeth, Sedgefield, Teesdale, Wansbeck and Wear Valley.

Daily Record: £700k BILL TO TART UP SPEAKER'S FREE HOME

By Daniel Bentley

And £990k on security for cash row MP Martin

COMMONS Speaker Michael Martin's London home has had more than £700,000 spent on it since he moved in, it was revealed last night.

The cash went on items such as furniture, art and air conditioning for the grace and favour official residence.

An additional £992,000 was spent on Speaker's Garden, although most of that went on improving security in the wake of 9/11.

The spending spree was revealed last night as he faced pressure over his review of MPs' expenses.

Martin, Labour MP for Glasgow North East, was elected Speaker in 2000.

Figures released under the Freedom of Information Act show that since 2001, £724,000 has been spent on Speaker's House, which includes the State Rooms of the Palace of Westminster.

Of that, £148,900 was spent on furniture, £191,000 on new air conditioning, £13,000 on works of art and £291,000 on "restoration and refurbishment".

Former independent MP and anti-sleaze campaigner Martin Bell was "shocked" by the figures.

He said: "The Speaker should be setting a good example and he is not.

"MPs have got to get their palace in order.

"We are close to a state of constitutional crisis. You run out of words in the end to describe his behaviour."

TaxPayers' Alliance campaign director Mark Wallace said the disclosure proved Martin was the wrong person to be heading a review of MPs' expenses.

He added: "These are stupendous sums.

"The Speaker is well paid and receives generous allowances as well as a free house, so it is excessive for him to be billing so heavily for furniture, art and cooling systems."

Martin's spokeswoman said the house included more than just his apartment and the spending was part of an improvements programme commissioned by the Parliamentary Estates Directorate.

She said: "Entertainment of visiting heads of state, parliamentarians and others take place in the State Apartments and the costs listed reflect environmental and heritage requirements and health and safety legislation."

Martin has already come under fire for claiming second-home allowance of more than £75,000 on his Glasgow property, for which he has no mortgage.

His wife Mary has also claimed thousands in taxi expenses. The disclosure sparked a row that led Martin's then spokesman, Mike Granatt, to quit.

In the last week, the Commons Commission - which the Speaker chairs - has faced criticism from MPs for launching a High Court appeal to block the release of details of MPs' second-home claims.

Former sheet metal worker Martin, who earns £138,000 a year, has barred MPs from talking about the appeal in the Commons.

Birmingham Post: Over 60 town hall bosses make it to the £100,000 club

By Paul Dale Public Affairs Editor

More than 60 West Midlands town hall bosses earn more than £100,000 a year and are benefiting from bonuses and above-inflation pay rises, according to a local government salary survey.

The study, by the TaxPayers'Alliance, uncovered wide variations in pay scales for chief executives, ranging from £170,000 for Birmingham City Council's Stephen Hughes and £166,000 a year for Dudley Council's Andrew Sparke, to £140,000 for Mary Fraser at Sandwell and £127,000 for Solihull's Katherine Kerswell. Mrs Kerswell, however, saw her pay package rise by 8.1 per cent between 2005-06 and 2006-07.

The figures, based on total remuneration including bonuses and expenses, show during 2006/07 Nigel Pursey, former chief executive of Staffordshire County Council, was the region's highest paid official with £176,000.

Stephen Hughes will be paid £174,000 in 2007-08, Birmingham City Council confirmed last night - up from £170,000.

Eight Birmingham City Council employees are paid more than £100,000, although the council is refusing to name them.

Dudley Council chief executive Andrew Sparke received £166,000 in 2006-07 - a 5.2 per increase.

Six Dudley Council officers and seven Warwickshire County Council officers pocketed more than £100,000 in 2006-07.

There were hefty increases over the two-year period for Shropshire County Council chief executive Carolyn Downs, with a 6.2 per cent rise, corporate director Elizabeth Nicholson, 8.6 per cent, and corporate director Jack Collier, seven per cent.

At Sandwell Council, Mary Fraser pocketed an 18.7 per cent pay rise when promoted from deputy to chief executive. Lynda Bateman, corporate services director, saw her pay rise 12.4 per cent between 2005-06 and 2006-07.

The figures were compiled from answers to Freedom of Information questions sent by the TPA to every council.

Thirteen West Midlands councils, chiefly smaller authorities, paid no one more than £100,000. Three - Lichfield, Shrewsbury & Atcham and Wolverhampton - failed to provide details. A Solihull Council spokeswoman refused to comment on Mrs Kerswell's pay rise, which she said was a "political decision" approved by former council leader Ted Richards.

Shropshire County Council leader Malcolm Pate praised staff who handled multi-millionpound budgets and "delivered excellent services".

Coun Pate added: "The county council has been consistently praised by the Audit Commission for providing excellent value for money for taxpayers. Compared to other county councils of a similar size, our wages are relatively low despite the council's excellent performance."

A spokeswoman for Dudley Council said the 5.2 per cent pay rise for chief executive Andrew Sparke had been presented in a misleading way.

She added: "The comparison the TaxPayers' Alliance is making is completely inaccurate.

The only differences that occur each year are the national inflation figures and any differences in mileage that may be incurred during the course of any given year."

Nationally, according to the TPA figures, there are six people in town h