Three Huddersfield health bosses each earned over £100,000 last year, according to official figures.

Greater Huddersfield Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) Chief Officer Carol McKenna earned over £120,000 in 2015/16.

Former financial director of both Greater Huddersfield and Calderdale CCGs Julie Lawreniuk was the next highest earner with a combined salary and pension contribution in excess of £140,000.

Clinical Director Dr Steve Ollerton came third, receiving at least £115,000, including a salary upwards of £85,000, on top of his GP salary.

Also earning a significant salary was joint Greater Huddersfield and Calderdale ‘Head of Quality And Safety’ Penny Woodhead who received upwards of £70,000.

Huddersfield doctors Dr Jane Ford, Dr Anuj Handa and Dr Ramesh Edara earned between £45,000 and £50,000 for their work on the CCG board, in addition to their GPs salaries.

And other clinical and lay board members earned between £10,000 and £40,000 for their roles in the CCG.

Greater Huddersfield Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) Chief Officer Carol McKenna
Greater Huddersfield Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) Chief Officer Carol McKenna

Meanwhile at Calderdale CCG the highest earner was Chief Officer Matt Walsh who received upwards of £175,000 last year, including a pension contribution of £40,000-plus.

And both Calderdale CCG Clinical Director, Dr Alan Brook, and Assistant Clinical Chair, Dr Steven Cleasby, earned between £60,000 and £65,000.

The salaries has caused some consternation among members of #HandsOffHRI which is fighting the CCGs’ plan to close Huddersfield’s A&E and centralise emergency care at Calderdale Royal Hospital, Halifax.

#HandsOffHRI spokesperson Natalie Ratcliffe said: “They want to stop saying they are bruised because of the public backlash.

“They earn enough to be criticised by the public for the decisions they have taken.

“They also earn enough to put their hands up and say they got it wrong.”

Video Loading

Jackie Holland, who posted on the Let's Save Huddersfield A&E Facebook group, added: “It’s our NHS – we pay for it and they work for us – they wouldn’t have a job if we didn’t exist.

“It’s time they started to work and fight for us for our advantage, not disadvantage.”

READ MORE:

READ MORE:

A spokesperson for Greater Huddersfield CCG said, “Salaries of Governing Body members are determined by the CCG’s remuneration committee who make decisions based on national guidance on remuneration, as well as benchmarking salary levels with other CCGs.”

A Calderdale CCG spokesperson added: “Calderdale CCG’s Governing Body members’ salaries are based on national guidance from NHS England and comparative data from other CCGs across England.

“Remuneration details for Governing Body members are published in Calderdale CCG’s annual report.