Eden councillors last night voted in favour of employing a new chief executive with an annual equivalent salary of £253,700.
Former Allerdale Borough Council chief executive, Ian Frost, is now set to take over from outgoing interim chief executive, Jason Gooding.
However, unlike his predecessor, who the district council shared with Carlisle City Council, Mr Frost will be working for Eden five days a week.
Mr Frost will be employed on interim basis until March 31, 2023, which is the proposed vesting date for the two new unitary authorities which are set to replace the six existing district, borough and city councils and Cumbria County Council as part of the Government’s plans for local government reorganisation.
Councillors were told that the new chief executive would be getting an annual equivalent salary of £253,700 – with a daily rate of £1,180 – which over the course of his tenure would equate to £380,550.
Gordon Nicolson (Con, Lazonby) said: “We are a small council – one of the smallest in the country – and I simply ask how can this remuneration be justified?”
The level of the salary exceeds that of the Prime Minister who earns £157,372 per annum, a cabinet minister earns £148,737, while the chief executive of Birmingham City Council, which is the biggest local authority in Britain, earns in the range of £186,000 to £227,000.
“I think what we are proposing to pay is out of all proportion in relation to the task in hand.”
Deputy council leader Mary Robinson (Ind Alliance, Kirkoswald) said the rate of pay being proposed by Eden was basically the market rate.
“That is what the market is for fixed term contracts for chief executives and that is why it is so much higher,” said Mrs Robinson.
However, John Lynch (Con, Penrith) said: “Like most sensible people I am actually incandescent with rage at this. It’s absolutely scandalous.”
And David Ryland (Ind, Hesket) said: “I feel we are being held to ransom here with guns placed at our heads.”
But Mike Eyles (Lib Dem, Penrith) said: “I think it’s important that we get a chief executive very quickly – especially considering the challenging times we have got to go through for the next 18 months or so.”
