SHOULD a review of local government in Suffolk decide Suffolk County Council is no longer needed, Mrs Hill could be in line for a redundancy pay out within just a year.

SHOULD a review of local government in Suffolk decide Suffolk County Council is no longer needed, Mrs Hill could be in line for a redundancy pay out within just a year.

The Boundary Committee has been tasked by central government with looking at other possibilities for revamping council structures across Suffolk.

As a result Suffolk County Council and Suffolk's seven district authorities all face the possibility of abolition with Whitehall chiefs keen to see elections as early as June next year.

That could create a situation where Mrs Hill is in post for as little as 12 months before the authority is disbanded.

A spokesman for Suffolk County Council said: “The chief executive is subject to the same terms and conditions as any other officer.

“The local government minister John Healey said he wasn't expecting any redundancies as a result of this review.”

A previous high profile pay-off in Suffolk was made to current chief executive of Norfolk County Council, David White.

Mr White was handed a sizeable sum when he left his post as chief executive of Suffolk Health Authority when it was replaced with five primary care trusts in 2002.

He later got a financial farewell package of £347,000 when he left his subsequent post as chief executive of Thurrock Council.