Struggling council's £209,000 absent boss pay-off

Christina Harrhy had been chief executive of Caerphilly council since 2018

A cash-strapped council has agreed a £209,000 settlement to pay off its chief executive who has been absent for nearly a year.

Sources have told BBC Wales that members of Caerphilly council met in secret on Monday evening to agree a pay-out for Christina Harrhy, who has not worked at the authority since last November.

The authority is trying to save £45m from its budget over the next two years and has faced rows over plans to close a museum and an arts venue.

The council confirmed that Ms Harrhy, who was appointed in 2018 and had a salary of £148,773 in 2022-23, had left the authority and her deputy Dave Street had taken over.

It confirmed a meeting took place to discuss a "confidential employment issue" and it "would not be appropriate to disclose the details of the meeting".

The Welsh Conservatives said the council should be transparent about such a large payment, saying it was a "kick in the teeth" for residents.

A major union said council workers will be "deeply disappointed" when finances were extremely tight.

It is not the first time the council has had to settle with a chief executive.

In 2021 the authority gave its former chief executive Anthony O’Sullivan, who was sacked in a pay row and had been away for work on paid gardening leave for a number of years, a £97,500 pay-out.

At Monday's meeting the council said Ms Harrhy had been absent since November 2023 due to sickness. She was assessed to be fit for work in January.

It is understood that, while she was off sick and after she was found fit to return, she raised concerns about working relationships and trust relating to Labour leader Sean Morgan and a senior officer.

Sources said an independent investigation that reported in the summer allegedly did not stand up the claims.

It is not clear what happened between the chief executive and Mr Morgan, and the BBC understands that councillors have been warned against speaking about the meeting publicly.

The settlement is made up of 10 months' salary - costing taxpayers £146,000 - payment in lieu of notice of £43,800 and accrued annual leave of £19,200.

Officials were said to have argued that the cost of a settlement was cheaper than going through a further investigation and facing a tribunal.

The sources told the BBC that the settlement was voted through by the council's governing Labour group.

The authority recently took the controversial decision to at least temporarily close Llancaiach Fawr Manor, a Tudor mansion and museum after spending £500,000 a year subsidising the site.

It has also proposed mothballing Blackwood Miners' Institute.

A source said: "I think people have been asked to put up with a lot with queries on changing services.

"I think there will be an outpouring of unhappiness from the public. This is not the way to run an authority."

Ms Harrhy confirmed she had left the council but declined to comment.

Morgan also declined to comment.

A Caerphilly council spokesman said: "A special meeting of council took place on Monday 7 October to discuss a confidential employment issue. It would not be appropriate to disclose the details of the meeting.

"We can confirm that Christina Harrhy has left the authority and that the deputy chief executive, Dave Street, will act as interim chief executive while the council considers the next steps in terms of appointing a permanent chief executive."

Asked if the payments to the chief executive would need to be detailed in the council’s annual accounts, the spokesman added that it would. The next set is due before June 2025.

Senedd Conservative leader Andrew RT Davies said on social media network X: "At a time when services are being cut and council tax is going up, Caerphilly residents will view this as a kick in the teeth."

Unison Caerphilly branch secretary Lianne Dallimore said: “The council says finances are extremely tight.

"People are losing their jobs with more redundancies on the way, and community services are being slashed.

“That makes it all the more painful for staff and residents affected to hear the authority is making such a payout when times are so tough. Council workers and members of the public will be deeply disappointed.”