The Chief Secretary to the Treasury Danny Alexander has agreed that 191 public servants can earn more than the Prime Minister David Cameron, who gets a salary of £142,500.
The government had announced that it would have to vet any public servant that wanted to earn more than the PM and the task was given to Alexander, who said: “In May 2010 it was announced that the chief secretary to the Treasury would be required to sign-off the salaries of any individuals earning over a full-time equivalent of £142,500 in areas under ministerial control. As of April 17 2012, I have been asked to approve the remuneration of 191 individuals.”
He went on: “I usually approve salaries at a range, prior to advertisement. The Treasury does not hold information about the date on which the final appointments were approved, or whether the final appointments were made on a full or part-time basis, and therefore whether salaries were pro rata or not.”
In response to a written question from Labour’s Rosie Cooper, Alexander said: “I now personally sign off any new pay above £142,000, the equivalent of the Prime Minister. This is a vital deterrent to ever higher pay at the top of the public sector. In central government alone, the number of people paid over £150,000 dropped by 55 since May last year and where applications do come in, I can and do reject them if I think they are too high.
“Since May 2010 in 83 like-for-like cases which sought my approval, pay was lowered in 45 cases, frozen in a further 23, saving more than £1m a year for the taxpayer. This includes a £100,000 cut in the pay for the new chief executive of Royal Mail.”
Pamela Flores is an events professional with experience at Symposium Events, a UK-based conference and events organization. She has worked in editorial and event coordination roles within the HR and expatriate management sector, contributing to the organization of major conferences including the Expatriate Management and Global Mobility conference. Her background spans online editorial work and events management within the professional conference industry.
- Pamela Flores
- Pamela Flores
- Pamela Flores
- Pamela Flores
