Rotherham Council hits back over fat cat salary claims

ROTHERHAM Borough Council has defended the salaries of its top-earning staff.

A council spokesman said: “The senior officer salaries reflect the priority we give to securing and retaining staff with specialist skills and significant responsibilities to deliver on our ambitious plans. 

“We believe these payments are comparable to other local authorities. 

“The council must ensure that in making senior appointments we provide good value for money for residents, and continue to prioritise improving council services. 

“We publish senior salaries on our website to ensure we are open and transparent.”

Political activist Michael Sylvester pointed out that neighbouring Sheffield had five employees on a six-figure salary.

But the RMBC spokesman added: “We do not recognise the statistics produced by the TaxPayers’ Alliance, which provide a very unreliable comparison between different councils.”

Some local authorities reported all salaries above £100,000 when pensions were taken into account, while others only included those paid above £100,000 before pension contributions were added.