It’s by law: all government officials who leave ministerial positions in the UK, whether voluntarily or not, are entitled to payment of a quarter of their annual salary — provided that, within the next three weeks, they do not take up a similar position again.
With the avalanche of dismissals in the government of Boris Johnson -among ministers, secretaries of state and parliamentarians, there were 61 conservatives who slammed the door in recent days-, the amount owed as compensation to be paid.
According to the accounts of the British Independent, already counting on the amount owed to the British Prime Minister, who gave his resignation speech at noon this Thursday, in total, UK government redundancies could cost £420,000, €493,637. This is if the now resigning rulers do not listen to the requests of the opposition and do not do “the decent thing”: abdicate these very benefits.
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“Conservative MPs spent months defending Boris Johnson and couldn’t get rid of him when they had the chance,” Wendy Chamberlain, leader of the Liberal Democrats in parliament, told the newspaper. “The public is not going to forgive them for having him in his place for so long. The infighting and sheer incompetence of the Conservatives cost the taxpayer even more money in the midst of the cost of living crisis. For the good of the country, the Conservative ministers who have resigned should do what is decent and forego their payments.”
As The Independent explains, these compensations are due to all members of the outgoing Government, including those who, like Michelle Donelan (who was appointed Secretary of State for Education on Tuesday, July 5, and resigned on Thursday, July 7), have remained in their positions for a residual time. Or those who, like Chris Pincher, who was responsible for the parliamentary discipline of the Conservatives that led to what turned out to be the fateful Boris Johnson crisis, have fallen from grace.
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The deputy dismissed thanks to the harassment complaints, says The Independent, will be entitled to receive compensation of 7,920 pounds, 9,307 euros. In the case of Michelle Donelan, the Guido Fawkes website, maintained by right-wing blogger Paul Staines, revealed, compensation for the 36 hours she spent in government will be 16,876.25 pounds, the equivalent of 19,825 euros. “If that is the case, I will donate the full amount to a local charity,” Donelan, a member of Parliament since 2015, responded via her Twitter account.
If this is the case, I will donate it in its entirety to a local charity.
—Michelle Donelan MP (@michelledonelan) July 7, 2022
According to the Independent, the UK government ministers receive between £67,505 and £22,475, in addition to the salaries (£84,144/year, equivalent to €98,918) they earn as members — and the latter will be maintained, since the resignations presented refer only to government positions.
the first Minister Boris Johnson, for example, will be entitled to receive compensation of 18,860 pounds, 22,164 euros, a quarter of the £75,440 he earns annually for his performance in office. It remains to be seen if he too will give up on her.
Source: Observadora
