Cameron’s ‘shame’ over high pay rises for special advisers
DAVID CAMERON should be “ashamed” of inflation-busting pay rises he handed out to special advisers just months before they were given generous severance packages, Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron has said.
The former prime minister upped the salary of some of his advisers - known as Spads - by as much as £18,000, or up to 24 per cent, according to analysis by Civil Service World.
The double digit hikes - ordered despite pay being capped at just one per cent across the public sector - were widely condemned.
Mr Farron said: “Cameron talked a lot about cutting the cost of politics over the last few years. This shows how utter empty this rhetoric was.
“This is triple whammy - honours to cronies and a whacking great pay rise and then a bumped up severance package. Compare this massive rise in a select few’s pay to a 1% pay rise given to nurses, teachers and public sector workers and the two per cent average pay award across the private sector in 2015.
“This is frankly utterly shameless and the former PM should be ashamed.”
Dave Penman, general secretary of the FDA union, which represents senior officials, told Civil Service World: “It would seem hypocrisy knows no bounds from a prime minister who preached pay restraint and austerity to public servants and the public, whilst at the same time awarding double-digit pay rises to his special advisers.”
Mark Serwotka, general secretary of the Public and Commercial Services union, told the magazine: “We believe that every civil servant deserves a decent pay rise. It is frankly shameful that David Cameron thinks that this should just apply to his close circle of political friends.”
John O’Connell, chief executive of the TaxPayers’ Alliance, said: “Taxpayers will be shocked at the size of these increases.”
A Cabinet Office spokeswoman said: “Decisions about special adviser salaries take into account various factors including the level of responsibility associated with a particular role and the background and experience of the individual concerned.”
A Downing Street spokesman said the special adviser pay rises dated back to the start of the Conservative-only administration following the 2015 general election and reflected changes in roles due to the move from coalition to single-party government.
Taxpayers will be shocked at the size of these increases. John O’Connell of the TaxPayers’ Alliance