Posted: 00:08, August 1, 2022 |  Updated: 00:09, 1 August 2022  

A chief executive accused of presiding over a “dysfunctional” town hall has walked away with a payout of more than £200,000. The ‘golden goodbye’ awarded to Daljit Lally includes holiday pay, legal fees and even cancellation of her company car lease. It came despite an official report revealing chaos at Northumberland County Council during her tenure, with officers and councilors spending more time “fighting each other” than running services for residents. Climate of Fear: Daljit Lally Mrs Lally was also found to have received £40,000 a year in “illegal expenses” for an outlandish council-run international consultancy and a local NHS trust. Harry Vaughan, of the Taxpayers’ Alliance, said: “This golden goodbye is a kick in the teeth for hard-pressed local taxpayers… The council must… ensure such a disgraceful situation never happens again.” Within three years of Ms Lally’s appointment as chief executive in October 2017, there has been a complete breakdown in her relationship with the town hall’s political leadership. Northumberland County Council chief executive believes she did nothing wrong’ A review of his government last month described a “climate of fear and intimidation” in which staff and councilors pursue grievances and complaints against each other. The entire organization was “paralyzed” as rivals filed Freedom of Information requests to dig up dirt on each other. “The operation of the council is described by many … as dysfunctional,” the review said. “One member described how the council and senior management spend too much time ‘fighting each other’ rather than doing business for residents.” A separate investigation found that Ms Lally had received “illegal expenses” of £179,032, on top of her £190,000 salary, to run an organization called Northumbria International Alliance which operated in China and the Gulf. The council was told there was “no chance” Ms Lally would resign and that she “believes she has done nothing wrong”. Council leader Glen Sanderson said: “This is the first step in our journey to restructure and recruit a new team of senior officers.”

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