Sir Keir Starmer's chief of workers acquired a post-election pay rise, which means he’ll now earn greater than the prime minister.
The BBC has been instructed that Sue Gray requested for and was awarded a wage of £170,000 – £3,000 greater than the Prime Minister and greater than any cupboard minister – or her Conservative predecessor.
A supply instructed the BBC: “It was suggested she might want to take a few thousand pounds less from the Prime Minister to avoid the story. But she refused.”
The determination has sparked an argument throughout the authorities surrounding Gray, whose stories that he, whereas a senior civil servant, attended events in Downing Street throughout the pandemic contributed to the downfall of Boris Johnson.
he then Worked as an advisor to the Labour Party,
His Conservative predecessor Liam, now Lord Booth Smith, who labored below Rishi Sunak, was paid on the high finish of the very best pay band for particular advisers. Between £140,000 and £145,000 per 12 months,
This improve in Sue Gray's wage comes after the Prime Minister signed a invoice to revise the salaries of particular advisers quickly after taking workplace.
The reclassification was accomplished by officers, not Gray, and his wage shouldn’t be on the high of the brand new highest band set for particular advisers.
The information of Sue Gray’s pay rise, handed to the BBC by a number of Whitehall sources, is the newest in a collection of leaks about her that paint an image of frayed relationships on the high ranges of presidency simply months after Labour got here into energy.
One insider instructed the BBC “It reflects the chaotic way Number 10 operates – no political decisions, an increasingly grandiose Sue who considers herself deputy prime minister so on a salary and no other voice for the prime minister to listen to because everything is run through Sue.”
The Prime Minister's earnings is £166,786.
One indignant Government supply described Gray's wage as “the highest special adviser salary ever in the history of special advisers”.
Others within the Government communicate out passionately in Sue Gray’s defence and consider that the vicious and personally motivated marketing campaign being waged towards her is wholly unfair.
“Any questions should be related to the process and not to any individual,” a authorities supply stated.
Gray's wage has sparked controversy within the Government, as different advisers consider he’s being underpaid.
Each Cabinet minister has a minimum of two particular advisers, a lot of whom have additionally served with them within the opposition.
Again, he was paid by the Labor Party.
Most folks have been anticipating a wage hike upon coming into the federal government, however they discovered that they’d truly be paid much less.
Many pissed off advisers blame Gray particularly – though others insist the pay difficulty is a matter for civil servants.
The majority of these on the committee answerable for the pay and circumstances of particular advisers in Whitehall are civil servants, but in addition consists of Gray and the prime minister's director of political technique, Morgan McSweeney.
One indignant adviser instructed the BBC: “It's ridiculous. I'm working harder than ever and doing a more important job and they want to pay me less than the Labour Party was paying me when it was bankrupt.”
These frustrations will not be simply restricted to junior consultants.
A supply claimed that the Prime Minister's communications director Matthew Doyle was initially provided a wage of £110,000, considerably lower than Gray's pay.
This was later elevated to £140,000, consistent with the identical quantity paid by a number of of his predecessors.
There isn’t any indication there was any inside resentment over Doyle's wage.
Many particular consultants labored for a number of weeks with out being proven the proposed employment contract, which meant that by the point they discovered what their wage can be, they’d no alternative however to simply accept it.
Once once more, Gray was extensively blamed for delays within the supply of formal contracts.
When Gray was appointed as Starmer's chief of workers in 2023, he was tasked with engaged on Labour's preparations for presidency.
Special advisers consider the dispute over their pay is an indication that the work was not accomplished in adequate element.
One adviser stated, “If you ever find any evidence of our preparedness for government, please let me know.”
When a brand new authorities is elected, dozens of latest particular advisers come collectively.
To be certain that folks received paid promptly, every of them was stored on a hard and fast wage whereas the brand new pay bands have been being labored out.
Others questioned why the preliminary part of appointments to ministerial posts, which was overseen by Gray, took so lengthy, though the Chief of Staff had months to plan.
The appointment of Minister for the Middle East, Hamish Faulkner, was not made till 18 July, two weeks after the overall election.
Successive Conservative governments have additionally thought-about growing the pay of particular advisers, and concluded that “politics runs wild”, as one Tory supply put it, that advisers needs to be given a pay rise at a time when thousands and thousands of households are fighting the price of dwelling.
We're instructed that proposals for pay rises have been totally labored by below each Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak, “but were rejected because they were deemed untenable.”
Now these in authorities are arguing that the pay of particular advisers has fallen far wanting that of others in Whitehall and must be elevated.
But different folks nonetheless consider that Sue Gray's wage is extreme.
With inputs from BBC
