Cash crisis at NHS… while 100 penpushers earn more than PM
THE number of health bureaucrats in Whitehall earning more than the Prime Minister has hit three figures, just as patients face the threat of NHS rationing.
Figures released by the Government show that 100 officials now take home more than Theresa May’s £150,402 – a total which has more than doubled in just four years.
The revelation comes after NHS England, the quango which runs the health service, announced it would have to limit access to operations and prescription medicines, citing a shortage of money. It said it would consider longer waits for surgery and clamp down on prescriptions for over-the- counter remedies for coughs, migraines and heartburn, as well as restricting the use of breakthrough medicines for heart disease and arthritis.
The Cabinet Office data shows that, despite the claims of a cash shortage, health bodies account for almost a quarter of the 442 officials who earn more than Mrs May. In 2017 there were 100 staff on more than £150,000 in quangos overseen by the Department of Health – up from 93 the previous year and just 48 in 2013.
Six of the people on the list earned more than £200,000.
John O’Connell, chief executive of the Taxpayers’ Alliance, said: ‘Amid the endless calls for more public spending, the pay of top bureaucrats has been soaring. People expect their money to be spent fairly and focused on frontline services, not on higher salaries for managers.
‘Taxpayers don’t resent paying for top talent to improve services, but pay should be related to performance and high salaries should not be taken for granted.’
The figures include only quango and central government staff and do not cover local NHS trusts, where many chief executives also earn far in excess of the Prime Minister.
The most highly paid health bureaucrat is Frances Gould, the lead public health microbiologist for the North East at Public Health England. She takes home £220,000, although it is not known why she earns much more than senior microbiologists in other regions of the country.
NHS England has 34 staff on more than £150,000 – a rise of seven on a year ago. The list is topped by chief financial officer Paul Baumann on £210,000, followed by national director for operations and information Matthew Swindells on £205,000. Dr Arvind Madan, director of primary care, is also on £205,000.
NHS England’s chief executive Simon Stevens actually earns less than these colleagues under his management – £195,000 a year.
Public Health England, which doles out advice on healthy living, comes next with 26 executives, up from 22 the year before.
NHS Improvement, which regulates health trusts, has 13 people on more than £150,000 – the same as the previous year.
The Department of Health itself has two executives on more than the PM, including chief medical officer Dame Sally Davies on £210,000.
A Department of Health spokesman said the total of 100 highly paid staff was lower than the 120 briefly recorded in 2014 after the creation of NHS England.
He added. ‘The department and its arm’s-length bodies deal with complex issues and need to attract, recruit, retain and motivate highly skilled individuals.’