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£69,000 pay-off for Ken Livingstone
Evening Standard 7 May 2008
Ken Livingstone could receive £69,000 within weeks after losing the election to Boris Johnson.
The ousted mayor is entitled to half his £137,579 salary under Treasury rules announced in March.
Campaigners reacted with fury after it emerged he gets at least £30,000 of the "golden goodbye" tax free.
Matthew Elliot, of the Taxpayers' Alliance, said: "There is no reason why Ken Livingstone should receive a penny from taxpayers. He earned a generous salary as Mayor, knew the date he was up for re-election, so should have planned a financial buffer in case he lost."
The new system of payments for loss of office is being introduced following the passing of the Greater London Authority Act 2007. This brings the GLA into line with MPs, who receive 50 per cent of their salaries, and Members of the Scottish Parliament.
The London Assembly voted for the changes in March after Mr Livingstone said financial security should be offered to people who have given up a job to enter politics and then find themselves ousted by the electorate.
Two Liberal Democrat Assembly members are also entitled to payoffs of around £25,000 - half their salary.
The cash will top up Mr Livingstone's earning potential as an after-dinner speaker. He joked during the campaign: "If I lost there would be a vacancy on the after-dinner speaking circuit so we [Boris Johnson and I] would really just be swapping jobs."
Reader views (19)
It is obvious that these elected people are working hard at rewarding themselves, increasing their salaries, giving themselves top pensions, and creating laws to protect themselves from prosecution, and avoiding taxes. Of course we, the tax payers, just pay pay pay, for their lavish live, their second home, their plasma screen, their shopping trolley, their kitchen, their lovers travel, and fake inquiries in corruption allegation etc, etc.
Now like the managers of incompetent companies like, TfL, rails, they are allocating themselves, bonuses.
Of course all this is prior to all the brown envelops distribution for allocating massive contract to their mates.
Just shameful and disrespectful to the people, who are only authorised to struggle and live in abject poverty.
- Lauren, London Uk, 08/05/2008 10:06
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A small price to pay to see the back of him...I'll chip in a hundred myself...
- Tim, London, 08/05/2008 06:37
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I think Ken definitely deserves this - and at least we know what he's being paid. Boris has appointed 4 deputy mayors in three days - presumably to lessen his own workload - but won't tell London how much they're being paid. So much for his promise to 'end cronyism'...
- Charlie, Soho, London, 08/05/2008 00:19
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£69K? That's about the same as what Boris spends on foie gras every month, isn't it?
- Charlie, Soho, London, 08/05/2008 00:15
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What a very small price to pay. Ken is no more.
Can we all club together to get rid of Mr Brown.
Perhaps then this country could start to breathe again.
- Samuel Lewis, London WC2, 08/05/2008 00:03
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Cheap for the metro to win the TFL contract
- Henri Hill, London, 07/05/2008 22:48
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£69,000 is a pittance compared with the huge payouts corporation bosses get when they leave. Their golden handshakes are in the £ millions, even if they resign because they have wrecked the company.
MPs will get similar amounts when they lose their parliamentary seats, so why shouldn't Ken? He may have been voted out, but he did a good job for London.
- Stan E., ex-London, 07/05/2008 21:28
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We're continuing to pay a darn sight more for the Blairdiot.
- Stephen, London, 07/05/2008 19:19
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Hope he informs the job centre of the money.
- Malcolm, chingford, 07/05/2008 18:38
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Good, Ken deserves it.
- Will Fox, London, UK, 07/05/2008 17:11
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Funny how that little rule got pushed through just in time for him to go.
- Deborah, London, 07/05/2008 15:22
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£69,000? An absolute bargain to be rid of him.
- Mike B, London, UK, 07/05/2008 15:13
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This is absolutely disgusting! What has he done to deserve this payment? Absolutely nothing!
A "golden good bye" of a minimum of £30,000 Tax Free when the "jury is still out" on ALL of his numerous dodgy dealings, associations & non-declarations? This is absolutely pathetic!
Then "to add insult to injury" he gets about another £39,000 just for losing his job? The position of Mayor was NOT made "redundant" so why ALL of this money?
Has he not been prudent over the last 8 years and saved any money at all or is it simply the case that the "gravy train" runs long after the job ends when you are senior at City Hall?
£69,000 plus (inc the tax free element) would probably fund FOUR low-paid, key-workers for at least ONE YEAR!
This Is London readers and London taxpayers are being simultaneously "mugged" and "fleeced" by politicians! This is an utter nonsense and a complete waste of taxpayer's money!
- Fraser, Telford Park, 07/05/2008 14:59
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If it is legally due to the outgoing mayor then it also must be fulfilled. Matthew Elliott's remarks simply ride subject negativity.
- James, London, 07/05/2008 13:18
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So much for professing to love London; yet another snout in the trough.
- L Wheatley, London, England, 07/05/2008 13:07
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It's worth it just to get rid of him but why doesn't he do the honourable thing and donate the money to charity.
- Lb, London, 07/05/2008 13:07
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69k?
Not much really is it? About enough for a dilapidated garden shed in Toxteth.
- Andrew, Enfield, 07/05/2008 12:49
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Don't see why people should be furious at the £30K tax-free bit. That rule applies to everyone. Nice work if you can get it and lose it, though.
- Mark Harris, Enfield, 07/05/2008 12:35
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Worth every penny. Bye bye, Ken.
- Nobby Clark, Perth, Scotland, 07/05/2008 12:30
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