MORE than 100 Essex County Council staff earn more than £80,000 a year, according to opposition leader Tom Smith-Hughes.

Ten years ago, when County Hall gave up Thurrock and Southend to new unitary councils, just nine people were paid those kind of salaries.

Now Mr Smith-Hughes believes 111 earn £80,000 or more with nine of them getting more than the Prime Minister’s £142,500 salary and four more pocketing more than £130,000.

Top earners are also guaranteed a pension worth 20 per cent of their salaries, plus bonuses, healthcare benefits and car allowances.

At a full council meeting, Mr Smith-Hughes, leader of the Lib Dem opposition at County Hall called for all salaries above £80,000 to be reviewed.

Councillors agreed a watered-down proposal which agreed to review senior managers’ pay, but mentioned no specific cutoff figure.

Michael Mackrory (Lib Dem, Springfield), who seconded the original motion, said: “This is only right.

“We need to take a long hard look at senior officer remuneration packages. We live in a different climate.”

Tory leader Peter Martin praised staff and said the council needed to pay competitively to attract the best people.

He added: “We do have a regular and effective review system, but we do need to review it. We have to be very sensitive to the fact we are going to have to make a lot of people redundant.”

David Finch, Tory councillor responsible for finance, also defended top officials’ pay, and said the annual salary bill had already been reduced by £19million by a middle management review.

A spokesman for Essex County Council disputed the figure for high earners and said that, if you take out school staff, it is actually 53 who earn more than £80,000.