Council chief amongst highest paid local government staff

THE chief executive of Derry City and Strabane District Council (DCSC) as well as three other staff members, have been named on a list of the top-earning local government workers in the North.

Revealed by lobbyists, the Tax Payers Alliance the list showed that chief executive John Kelpie, earns £146,388 per year. He is one of 47 employees across the North’s 11 councils whose annual pay package was a six-figure sum in the 2022–23 financial year.

The council boss’s wage is only £17,000 less than that of British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who reportedly earned £167,391 in 2023.

It is also over £20,000 higher than the entitled wage of First Minister Michelle O’Neill and Deputy First Minister Emma Little Pengelly, who reportedly are both able to earn an annual salary of £123,500.

Three other staff members of DCSC were named on the list of top local government earners, all making annual salaries close to £90,000 per year.

The director of business and culture, Stephen Gilespie, the director of community and health, Karen McFarland and the director of environment and regeneration, Karen Philips all earning £92,500.

The figures from the Taxpayers Alliance, which calls itself “Britain’s independent grassroots campaign for lower taxes,” include salary, pension contributions, benefits, expenses, and bonuses. Staff costs are estimated to account for around 40 percent of the total expenditure across the North’s 11 councils.

John O’Connell, chief executive of the Tax Payers’ Alliance, said, “The new financial year has seen council tax soar across the country, and taxpayers will notice that top brass pay has simultaneously surged.

“Local authorities provide crucial services, and residents will want to make sure they are getting bang for their buck with their ever-increasing bills.

“Residents can use these figures to ask whether precious funds are really going towards frontline services or whether town hall bosses can get better value for money.”

A spokesperson for Derry City and Strabane District Council this week stated, “All council salaries are in line with the local government salary scales.”

ef amongst highest paid local government staff