Bosses at councils heading for bankruptcy pocket more pay than Rishi Sunak

09 September 2023 , 20:19

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Deborah Cadman, Chief Executive of Birmingham City Council, is pictured on the Peaky Blinders red carpet

Bosses at five councils heading for bankruptcy are pocketing more pay than Prime Minister Rishi Sunak.

The highest salary of £263,371 dwarfs the PM’s £167,391 for running the country. Skint authorities in Kent, Stoke-on-Trent, Southampton and Bradford all face joining cash-strapped Birmingham in going bust.

But Birmingham, which declared itself effectively bankrupt over a £650million blackhole, paid chief Deborah Cadman a basic £244,820 in 2022/23 – up from £186,003 in 2021/22.

Ms Cadman, 60, is seen here at a bash for BBC1 hit Peaky Blinders, set in Birmingham. Kent County Council must find £86m and, like Birmingham, faces issuing a Section 114 Notice – bankruptcy in all but name.

Despite its “perilous position”, David Cockburn, who stepped down in July, took home £263,371 in pay and perks in his final year. His replacement is in line for up to £236,000.

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Southampton Council, at risk of going bust, pays head Mike Harris up to £191,063 a year – £99.03 an hour. And Bradford Council, which is close to financial “exhaustion”, is set to hire Lorraine O’Donnell on £205,000. In Stoke, which has an £8.5m shortfall, city director John Rouse saw his basic pay rise from £172,753 in 2022 to £177,269 this year.

The TaxPayers’ Alliance slammed the salaries at a time councils were “wasting cash on vanity projects and silly investments”. Unite national lead officer Onay Kasab said: “It’s fatcat salaries for chief executives but skipped meals and a life struggling to afford the basics for council workers.”

John Siddle