Ministry of Defence get £40m in bonuses
BRITAIN’S army of Ministry of Defence civil servants have shared £40million in bonuses, it emerged yesterday.
It comes as our Armed Forces face huge cuts and pay freezes.
One official at the Ministry of Defence received as a bonus the equivalent of an Army colonel’s annual salary – a payment of £85,831 – on top of their six-figure salary.
The money has been shared between 55,000 officials since April last year.
The MoD has come in for criticism for its financial performance, particularly in procuring equipment.
Conservative MP and former soldier Patrick Mercer said: “The only rewards our fighting men and women can get are medals.
“It seems strange that civil servants who are never shot at get the sort of rewards that many of our warriors would love.”
The only rewards our fighting men and women can get are medals
The MoD said: “More than half of civil servants earn less than £20,000 a year and in 2010-11 the average award, which is taxable, was around £650.