Leaders defend £150k chiefs in pay cut call

Conservative council leaders today rallied round to defend chief executives who earn more than £150,000-a-year - after receiving demands from the government that they take a pay cut.

Three council chief executives in the Black Country and Staffordshire earn more than the Prime Minister and communities secretary Eric Pickles has now said he wants them to agree to cut their pay.

Two of them — Nick Bell at Staffordshire County Council and John Polychronakis at Dudley — have already done so.

But their council leaders say they are worth it and warned they need to pay salaries to attract people with the skills needed to steer them through massive budget cuts.

Mr Pickles said: "If you're on a salary of £150,000, you can afford to take a five per cent pay cut. Likewise, to all those on £200,000, you can afford a 10 per cent cut."

Nick Bell has a salary package of wages and benefits of £195,000. The council took the opportunity to reduce the salary from £208,000 in 2010 when Ron Hilton left.

John Polychronakis is on £157,021 but already took a pay cut of £22,000 in 2009. Paul Sheehan, of Walsall, received £189,533 including fees and allowances.

Jan Britton, interim chief executive at Sandwell, is on a salary of £139,000 — less than predecessor Allison Fraser who picked up £152,174 and stood down last year.

Philip Atkins, leader of Staffordshire County Council, said: "The county council is a large, complex organisation delivering crucial services to around 800,000 people and we need the right level of experience and knowledge in the top positions."

Councillor Anne Millward, Tory leader of Dudley Council, which is drawing up £35 million of cuts, said: "We are a well-run local authority and I have nothing but praise for John Polychronakis who is responsible for 800 different lines of service and a budget of hundreds of millions of pounds. He has a very difficult job to do and as the saying goes, if you pay peanuts you get monkeys.

"The government needs to let us get on with the job of running the council and to make decisions like this for ourselves."

Councillor Mike Bird, Walsall Council leader, said: "Eighteen months ago Walsall Council removed a number of senior manager positions and senior pay is currently under consideration."

Simon Warren, chief executive of Wolverhampton council, received £133,380 last year. At South Staffordshire, chief executive Steve Winterflood has a salary of £93,768.

Nina Dawes, chief executive of Lichfield District Council, received £96,906 and took a pay freeze in 2009.

Ian Miller of Wyre Forest District Council got £105,000. Stephen Brown of Cannock council is on £112,000 and Ian Thompson, of Stafford Borough Council, earns £104,991.