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The row over senior pay in the public sector has become a game of two halves. Local government minister John Healey has confirmed a consultation on getting councils to publish the details of the remuneration of senior managers. A later version of Flash Player is required to view this content Download flash player // Mr Healey explained why he wants the changes: ‘It's right that councils decide the wages for their staff but the public pay and they have the right to see the full picture of top pay and perks. ‘Councils are big organisations with a tough job – they need the best people in charge. But we've recently seen top salaries rising far faster than the rest of local government, with some councils swapping managers like premiership football clubs.' John Healey salary/expenses 2007/08 Cost of staying away from main home £18,674 Office running costs £24,894 Staffing costs £84,204 Stationery £1,099 Postage costs £2,258 IT provision £1,376 Commons Allowance £4,826 Total £137,331 Ministerial salary £104, 050 Total £241, 381 Source: Houses of Parliament The consultation is on a change to the way staff earning over £50,000 is reported, breaking this down into £5,000 bandings in place of the existing £10,000 bandings. The CLG explains: ‘At present, public bodies are not required to set out the remuneration packages for individual senior employees in their annual accounts. In the financial statements of listed companies in the private sector, the requirement is to disclose information about basic pay, pensions and bonuses of directors, by name. 'Similarly in central government, the Financial Reporting Manual issued by HM Treasury requires Departments to disclose the names and detailed remuneration information for the permanent secretary and senior officials/ members of the Board within £5,000 bands.' Disclosure is on salary, bonuses, additional payments, compensation/ex gratia payments, benefits in kind, and pension information for each ‘senior' employee from 2009-10. The extent and focus of disclosure would be comparable to central government for the most senior and highly paid individuals. You can view the consutlation in full here. Mr Healey is not the only politician to criticise public sector pay. Eric Pickles, when Conservative local government spokesman, also raised concern. Party leader David Cameron also voiced objections in a recent speech. And the The TaxPayers' Alliance, always vociferous on the issue, claims to have uncovered 578 officials in town halls who earn more than £100,000 a year. They calculated in their last survey, based on Freedom of Information requests, that Peter Gilroy, the chief executive of Kent CC, receives £229,999 a year. He was closely followed by Gerald Jones, chief executive of Wandsworth Council, who was paid £227,424. The Society of Local Authority Chief Executives has said it has no problem with disclosure but rejects claims of ‘fat cat' pay. Its own research of its members' average pay against that of selected private sector companies with similar turnovers and staffing levels showed that private sector chief executives were typically paid about three times as much, before bonuses and incentives. The average shire council employed 22,000 people, turned over £850M and paid its chief executive £169,000. But an Audit Commission study last year showed chief executive pay in single-district and shire counties rose by a third in the four years to 2007/08. The commission conceded that ‘it remains a concern' that its measure of council performance showed steady improvement over the years, while measures of public satisfaction with services moved in the opposite direction. At the same time, the row over MPs expenses highlighted the costs of MPs and ministers to the taxpayer. To his credit, Mr Healey has been clear and open about his expenses (see table). To add up the full costs of Government ministers, simply add their expenses to their ministerial salaries. This is available on Downing Street's list

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Take your side on public sector pay

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