THURROCK Council has finally responded, following pressure from Thurrock Nub News, and updated its website showing salary details of all officer posts over £50,000 on 1 April 2024 and naming officers earning more than £150,000 – also giving details of higher echelon officers' roles and responsibility.

It partially fixes a longstanding breach in the Transparency Code, repeatedly highlighted by Thurrock Nub News.

Three named officers, Dr David Smith, Dan Fenwick and Sheila Murphy receive an annual salary of more than £150,000.

Dr Smith, the Chief Executive and Managing Director Commissioner, had a salary of between £240,001 and £245,000. Mr Fenwick, Executive Director, Corporate Services & Monitoring Officer, had a salary between £155,001 and £160,000 – as does Sheila Murphy, Executive Director of Children's Services.

Seventeen other officers earn more than £100,000 and nine more than £90,000.

Their salaries and titles are shown here – and job responsibilities can be found via this link. However, the council has still not met the full requirement of the Transparency Code. It says the council must publish a list of responsibilities (for example, the services and functions they are responsible for, budget held and number of staff) and details of bonuses and 'benefits in kind', for ALL employees whose salary exceeds £50,000.

In total, the data produced on 1 April 2024 shows the council has 425 employees earning more than £50,001 and their roles and responsibilities are not explained.

That number is likely to have risen as, in February this year the council approved a 3.2 per cent pay increase for all staff, effective from April 1, 2025. That's an annual increase of around £1,600 for those earning £50,000, £3,000 for those officers already earning more than £90,000 – while Dr Smith's pay will have leapt more than £7,600 by that calculation.

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Recently published data shows that the average salary paid to people in employment in Thurrock is £35,562, which is 1.3% higher than England's national average salary of £35,106.

The last available figures show that Thurrock Council employed 2,356 employees. That number comes from December 2024, so it's probable that more than 22 per cent at the council earned more than £50,000 on 1 April 2024 – as opposed to 16 per cent a year before. All at a time of service reduction and cost-cutting as the council attempts to reduce its operational budget.

Its current debt remains unclear, but despite selling off many assets and costcutting, it is believed to be more than £1bn. Councillors have been briefed on plans for the coming 2026-27 financial year but finance officers were unable to give an exact assessment of the supposedly cash-strapped council's debt, largely caused by its failed solar investments policy. The council is reportedly paying more than £70 million a year to service that debt - which is does by increased borrowing.

Thurrock Labour MP Jen Craft has been analysing the council's data and says: "Transparency data such as this is crucial to people in Thurrock being able to have trust in the way the council operates - it is vital that in future the council now publish the data in full as set out in the legislation and in a timely manner - it shouldn't take the dogged efforts of Thurrock Nub News to ensure that this happens!"

Thurrock Nub News editor Neil Speight, who has challenged the council over its breach of the code and its dilatory manner, which he describes as 'contempt for the residents of Thurrock', said: "I am pleased to see these figures published at last - we had to fight to get the previous statistics published - but I share Mrs Craft's concern that it should be down to Nub News to force the issue.

"There are still some small anomalies in the figures as I read them, but I have passed those concerns to the council and I am sure they will check and amend if required.

"It's disappointing that the council has still not met the full requirements of the Transparency Code, it seems even this lesson over its obligations to the public have still not been fully learned.

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"And reading them, we have to bear in mind they are figures based on 1 April 2024 – that's 17 months ago. It might be interesting to see what the data shows today."