SUFFOLK county councillors have given the go-ahead to the appointment of Andrea Hill as chief executive on a salary of up to £220,000.

Graham Dines

SUFFOLK county councillors have given the go-ahead to the appointment of Andrea Hill as chief executive on a salary of up to £220,000,

Mrs Hill, who is currently chief executive of Bedfordshire, may only be in post for two years if the Government goes ahead with the introduction of unitary councils in Suffolk.

She replaces Mike More, who is off to take charge of Westminster city council, but her salary is up to £70,000 higher than Mr More earned in Suffolk.

Opposition councillors voted against the appointment, after Labour protested that the council's own rules and procedures had been breached and that the process was fundamentally flawed.

The final vote was 37 in favour, 31 against and one absention.

Matthew Elliott, Chief Executive of the TaxPayers' Alliance, said Andrea Hill's salary was “in another league” from other highly paid council chief executives throughout the UK.

“With council tax bills running at record levels and services still apparently strapped for cash, it is shocking that the council are spending so much of taxpayers' money on one staff member,” said Mr Elliott.

“Suffolk families and pensioners struggle to make ends meet, and they want their council tax spent on services not fat cat salaries.”