Pay rise row over West Midlands Ambulance Service chief exec

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The chief executive of the West Midlands and East of England ambulance services has been criticised after seeing his annual pay rise by £50,000.



Dr Anthony Marsh took on the East of England role in January and splits his week between the two services.

His combined salary is now more than £232,000, prompting MP Tom Watson to ask if he was "the highest paid public servant you've never heard of".

The ambulance services said Dr Marsh represented a good deal for taxpayers.

While currently based in the East for three days a week, the West Midlands Ambulance Service said Dr Marsh was representing both services "24 seven".

He previously worked five days a week for the West Midlands.

The ambulance service said the £50,000 increase related specifically to the work he had taken on in the East and meant an overall saving of £130,000 by not having two substantive chief executives.

Tom Watson, Labour MP for West Bromwich East, said: "I would like to know exactly how Dr Marsh came to be appointed to two jobs and exactly who took the decision to give him a pay rise of this size.

"The spin doctors at West Midlands Ambulance Service have not given the full valuation of Dr Marsh's package.

"Given the fact he is holding down two jobs with two different authorities, both on huge pro-rata salaries, I think a little more scrutiny is called for. I find it hard to believe that ministers would approve of such arrangements"

Missed targets

Both ambulance services have faced strong criticism in the last year.

In May, the West Midlands Ambulance Service was fined £2.6m for failing to meet targets for emergency response times.

A month earlier, a report by the Care Quality Commission found the East of England service was failing to meet four out of six key targets.

Dr Marsh's salary means he earns £90,000 more than the prime minister.

West Midlands Ambulance Service said Dr Marsh represented a combined workforce of almost 9,000 staff, who answer approximately 6,000 999 calls every day and cover a combined area of over 12,000 square miles.

It said, by comparison, the two areas were covered by 11 Chief Fire Officers and 10 Chief Constables.

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West Midlands and East of England ambulance chief pay branded 'obscene'

The salary of the chief executive of two ambulance services has been branded "obscene" by a government minister.

Dr Anthony Marsh, the head of the West Midlands and East of England services, is paid a total of £232,000 a year.

Health Minister and Suffolk MP Dr Dan Poulter said he intended to ask the chairs of both trusts to "explain what they're doing with public money".

An ambulance service spokesman said: "It's ludicrous to suggest the taxpayer is getting poor value for money."

Dr Marsh previously worked five days a week for the West Midlands service, but also took on the role with the East of England Ambulance Service Trust in January.

The combined role brought a salary increase of £50,000 but meant an overall saving of £130,000 by not having two substantive chief executives, the East of England Ambulance Service (EEAST) said.

However, Dr Poulter, the MP for Central Suffolk and North Ipswich, described the salary package as "unacceptably high" and said it sent a "very bad message" to front-line staff.

"Effectively Dr Marsh is being paid two salaries at the same time, even though he's only doing half a job for each ambulance service.

"It's obscenely high and a profligate waste of money."

Dr Poulter said he had raised the issue with ministerial colleague Earl Howe, who is responsible for the ambulance service within the Department of Health.

"There's no doubting that Anthony Marsh is a very skilled man with a lot to offer to the ambulance service... but when you're in a leadership role you have to set an example," Dr Poulter said.

"I'm going to be raising the issue directly with the chairs of the ambulance trusts and calling them in for a meeting to make sure they can explain what they're doing with public money, and explain why they're not prioritising front-line patient care with the money they're given by the NHS and then by the government."

A EEAST spokesperson said: "Since his appointment, Mr Marsh has saved taxpayers approximately £8m of back office functions and management savings to help fund the recruitment of 400 new staff, with more than 120 already having joined the trust, and brought in 147 brand new ambulances and more than 60 rapid response vehicles.

"The organisation has turned a corner thanks to the actions Mr Marsh has put in place."