Only 1800 quid in expenses? – if I lived in the Shropshire Council area I’d be ashamed to think that our Chief Executive and his chums were claiming such miserly amounts. Couldn’t they employ one of the soon-to-be-redundant MPs to come in and show them how to do it properly?

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how can they really make as much difference as spending that amount of core services would?

million pounds a year just on them, you could employ lots of coppers or bin men for that!

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that a disgrace at any time but in a recession, really that takes the !£$%%

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Members of ‘Common Purpose’ no doubt or at least the unusual handshake squad.

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What? I just choked on my tea when I read the headline. I’m all for talent being rewarded, but how can these salaries be justified?

Let’s hope Clegg does get elected afterall, to ensure these characters get taxed at an appropriate rate!

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There are too many Executives on gold plated salaries and pensions in the Council which we the public cannot afford. The Gravy train has to stop otherwise the country is in trouble. Who is dreaming up these fancy job titles and salaries. The Public sector needs sorting out!

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mean while the council is cutting back on meals on wheels and skips and schools all trying to save just tens of thousands of pounds, it seems obvious to me where to look for the savings!

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i’d like to see the conservative councillors who appointed him explain why they justify this while they feel the public sector generally is not valuable and is inefficient, surely this is why, because on top of these costs will be the same again for pension, NI etc, its unjustifable, i think for half that you could get a good cheif

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These people are being paid the going rate, like it or not. At least they pay their tax and National Insurance not like the Tax dodging private sector fat cats with off shore bank accounts.

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There is no point jumping to conclusions and moaning that they get paid too much, when you haven’t got all the facts and figures.

If Mr Ryley earns £180,000 but through his experience and expertise creates/saves more money in proportion than somebody else in his position earning much less then he does; he has still been good value for money.

Their expenses seem perfectly fine to me.

In the world of business and most walks of life the cream will normally rise to the top. These people can’t keep accidently keep getting promoted pay increases if they have been doing a bad job.

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I think on balance I’d rather our money be going to the professional officers, as opposed to all those councillors (our ‘representatives’, ho ho) that the officers have to answer to….!

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Nick Griffiths [#21] makes an interesting point about the Prime Minister’s salary. Members of Parliament, the Cabinet and the Prime minister are chronically underpaid versus roles in the private sector. This is why they exploited the expenses system. If they were paid properly in the first place…..

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Good to see some balanced comments in response to the armchair cynics. As the saying goes, a cynic knows the price of everything and the value of nothing.

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This article seems designed to prompt exactly the sort of knee-jerk reactions that litter the page. It’s all very well thumping fists and preparing to man the baricades in disgust at these “vast” salaries, but as mentioned, they do reflect the going rate of senior posts within public service. Perhaps some of the cynical critics would prefer the whole of the local authority’s work to be privatised, outsourced, asset-stripped then subsidised from taxes.
Please people, get over youselves. So many of the comments appear prompted by the jealously and petty-mindedness that buys into the media’s picture of feckless public officials. The media loves a story like this because if sells papers or get hits. Heaven forbid they should publish a headline like “Council Officer does good job on time within budget.”
And yes, I relise what sort of pathetic comments those of you who hide behind pseudonyms will make of that last sentence.
Just accept that, depsite all the whinging, the Council does actually do a pretty good job with increasingly limited resources in a highly litigious society, where many people demand a handout first and foremost as a right, regardless of what they might have done to contribute to it.
I shall now dismount from my soapbox. Thank you

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The salaries are a reflection of their responsibility and personally, I think the private sector would probably pay more but you can’t compare really as the business is not for profit. If the job is so easy then everyone would be earning this wage!

Also, why shouldn’t these people be allowed to claim parking expenses if it’s to do with work?

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How many road patches will £180,000 pay for?
I like this term “going rate for the job”.
A good dead wood pruning is long overdue.
Don’t these “Executives” live in the real world? Long ago I was taught that you need ten productive employees to support one in an office.

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I’m pretty sure that directors of private companies with a turnover of £628 million earn far more than Kim Ryley.

I do know that public sector employees doing the same job as myself (I work in the private sector) are paid considerably less.

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