Row over council chiefs' salaries

Council tax hikes have been used to fund a burgeoning army of "fat cat" officials earning more than £100,000, it has been claimed.

The Taxpayers' Alliance hit out at the "insult" of high salaries at local authorities across the UK as it published a "rich list" of senior staff.

The number of employees whose pay packets topped the £100,000 mark shot up 35% last year, according to data obtained by the pressure group under the Freedom of Information Act.

The highest earner in 2005-6 was Tom Scholes, chief executive of Renfrewshire Council in Scotland, who received £233,029 - although this included a £113,015 redundancy payment.

A close second was Kent chief executive Peter Gilroy - who banked £229,999 - followed by Wandsworth's chief executive and Director of Administration Gerald Jones on £227,424. All the top 10 were paid more than Prime Minister Tony Blair's salary of £186,429.

The list, based on responses from 230 councils, gives details of the 578 employees who were paid more than £100,000 in 2005-6. Figures disclosed for the previous year reveal that only 429 people fell into that category.

Some 64 people received in excess of £150,000 from their town halls, and five saw their remuneration top £200,000. The average pay packet was nearly £125,000. And the total wage bill for those on the list was £72 million - compared to £53 million for those in the same earning bracket in 2004-5.

Taxpayers' Alliance chairman Andrew Allum described the figures as an "insult".

"Thousands of pensioners are having to choose between heating their homes and paying their council tax bills. It's a complete insult to their dignity that so much of their money goes down the drain on top salaries for council staff. Town halls need to get a grip and cut back on gold-plated salaries, or they will find that council tax quickly becomes the new poll tax."

The average council tax rise in England and Wales is expected to be 4.2% this year - the second lowest since 1994-5, but still well above the consumer price index inflation rate of just 2.7%.