Kennedy wants investigation of top Public Sector salaries in Northern Ireland
Danny Kennedy MLA, Deputy Leader of the Ulster Unionist Party, wants an investigation into top civil servant and public sector pay levels, pay rises and bonuses in Northern Ireland. His call comes after a report from the Taxpayer’s Alliance in the UK revealed that the highest earners in the public sector have seen their pay rise by six times the rate of inflation and more than three times the national average.
“The top 300 bosses in the state sector in the UK saw their salaries increase by 12.8% last year, boosting their pay to an average £237,564. Seventeen earned more than £500,000 per year. This is alarming given the fact that their job security is considerably in excess of high paid private sector bosses. I want to find out what the real situation is here in Northern Ireland for public sector pay.”
“With the failure of Finance Minister Peter Robinson to negotiate a financial package for Northern Ireland, we cannot afford to underwrite inflated public sector boss pay raises and bonuses. We need to get value for money and I am not sure we are getting it. The UK figures certainly alarmed me.”
“There will have to be clarity about the performance of public sector ‘fat-cat’ bosses who earn so highly. There are 10 top civil servants of this UK fat cat rich list complied by the Taxpayer’s Alliance. So we need to find out exactly how well they are performing. There needs to be specific measures of performance set against these payments. In many parts of the public sector things are not improving and people are asking where the money is going?”