Borough chief earned less than head of spin
IPSWICH: Borough interim chief executive Russell Williams cost taxpayers a total of �89,096 last year – �15,000 less than the county council’s head of communications.
New spin doctor Jill Rawlins will cost more than �100,000 in just six months even though Mr Williams is head of an organisation with 1,200 staff compared to her department of 33.
Figures released by the borough today show that Mr Williams’ basic pay was almost �79,000. The borough also paid pension contributions of just over �10,000.
He was appointed to his new role in December, shortly after the death of Jim Hehir. His anticipated basic pay for this year is �91,678.
The borough is currently looking to appoint a permanent chief executive – but deputy leader John Carnall insisted that the salary would be “well under” �100,000.
He said: “We pay what we consider to be a fair rate for the job. We are the largest borough or district in Suffolk but we don’t pay as much as any of the others.”
Top earner at the borough last year was director Laurence Collins who took home �79,887 with a further �10,401 in pension contributions.
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The borough has 11 employees paid more than �55,000 a year, less than one per cent of its total workforce.
The lowest-paid full time staff earned �12,489 – so the highest earning directors earned 6.4 times the amount of the lowest-paid staff.
Across the road from Ipswich council’s Grafton House headquarters, county council interim head of communications Mrs Rawlins started work last week.
She is being paid �650 a day, plus �150 a day fee to the agency which recruited her, meaning the total cost of her six-month appointment will be �104,000.
n Are council chiefs paid too much? Write to Your Letters, Evening Star, 30 Lower Brook Street, Ipswich, IP4 1AN or e-mail eveningstarletters@eveningstar.co.uk
n County council defends role of BT manager – page 19
