NHS boss earns £60,000 more than her predecessor, figures show
NHS boss earns £60,000 more than her predecessor as she rakes in up to £260,000, government figures show
- NHS England chief executive Amanda Pritchard earns a salary of over £255,000
- This is believed to be £60,000 above that of her predecessor Simon Stevens
- NHS England last night said Mrs Pritchard had not received a pay rise since 2016
NHS England chief executive Amanda Pritchard was hired on £60,000 more than her predecessor, government figures revealed yesterday.
She is paid between £255,000 and £260,000 for her role leading the health service, Cabinet Office data shows.
By comparison, Simon Stevens was paid between £195,000 and £200,000 for the same job.
NHS England last night said Mrs Pritchard had not received a pay rise since 2016, when she was head of Guy’s and St Thomas’ Trust in London.
But the disparity in the salaries will raise eyebrows at a time when Boris Johnson prepares to increase national insurance contributions by 1.25 percentage points to fund health and social care.
NHS England chief executive Amanda Pritchard is paid between £255,000 and £260,000 for her role leading the health service
It is understood that Mr Stevens – now Lord Stevens – did not accept two salary increases he was entitled to when he was boss of NHS England.
Mrs Pritchard is also said to have refused a £20,000 pay rise when she was head of the trust.
A total of 50 staff from NHS England earned more than £150,000 in September last year, the figures revealed. NHS England said the cost of ‘executives’ salaries has reduced by around 20 per cent since 2018’.
Mrs Pritchard’s salary can only be reported after the Mail informed the Cabinet Office that it had not included all public servants earning more than £150,000 in the list it published last month.
The original list said that across Whitehall and quangos, 599 people were on more than that amount. But it has since admitted that it left off 24 people – all from NHS England – by mistake, increasing the total to 623.
Other high earners at NHS England include Emily Lawson, NHS lead for the Covid vaccination programme and later tasked with ensuring NHS money is spent wisely.
Mrs Pritchard is said to have refused a £20,000 pay rise when she was head of Guy’s and St Thomas’ Trust in London
She earned up to £235,000, while Stephen Powis, national medical director, earned £230,000.
Other health quangos also had dozens earning more than £150,000, including Maria Zambon, head of influenza, MERS and acute respiratory virology on £235,000.
Mark Hewlett, chief operating officer at under-fire NHS Test and Trace, earned up to £225,000.
A spokesman for NHS England said: ‘Amanda Pritchard’s salary has not changed since 2016 when she became chief executive of Guys and St Thomas NHS Trust and there was no salary increase upon appointment as NHS chief executive.
‘The cost of NHS England and NHS Improvement executives’ salaries has reduced by around 20 per cent since 2018 and the NHS is one of the most efficient health services in the world, with administrative costs of less than 2p in every pound of NHS funding, compared to 5p in Germany and 6p in France – providing taxpayers with excellent value for money.’
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