Number of council managers with pay packets over £100,000 up on last year in Northern Ireland

That is the one of the findings of a research project by the TaxPayers' Alliance, which has submitted Freedom of Information requests to councils across the UK.

It carries out this research annually, and its most recent work has identified 59 such individuals in Northern Ireland.

A year earlier, the figure had been 51.

The pay packets involved include annual pension contributions as well as salary.

Belfast City Council has 10 such six-figure officials, more than any other.

The remaining councils are as follows:

Antrim and Newtownabbey: 8

Ards and North Down: 6

Armagh, Banbridge and Craigavon: 4

Causeway Coast and Glens: 4

Derry City and Strabane: 4

Fermanagh and Omagh: 4

Lisburn and Castlereagh: 6

Mid and East Antrim: 3

Mid Ulster: 5

Newry, Mourne and Down: 5

According to the list, the highest-paid individual was the chief executive of Belfast council, with a salary of £152,500 listed, plus £28,975 in pension contributions, together totalling £181,475.

The TaxPayers’ Alliance said in a statement, in reference to the UK-wide list of figures: “The number of council bosses receiving more than £100,000 in 2024-25 stood at 4,733, the highest level since this dataset was first published in 2007 and 827 more than last year's edition.

"This is an increase of over 21% on last year, as council wage bills continue to grow."

It added that some 320 council employees received a higher salary than that allocated to the Prime Minister, with the highest-paid one being an official in Staffordshire council, who received around £457,500.

It added that “councils have routinely increased council tax by 4.99% each year, the maximum before a local referendum is mandatory in England, often citing stretched budgets and increased demands”, adding: “Despite budget shortfalls, councils have been able to consistently find ever-increasing amounts to pay senior staff.”