Croydon Council is to increase the pay packet of its new chief executive by £5,000 per year.

Jo Negrini, the first woman to lead the authority in the borough’s history, will be paid £185,000 a year providing councillors approve the increase at a full council meeting on Monday night.

Ms Negrini, previously director of place at the council, will be formally confirmed in the position at the meeting after spending three months as interim chief executive.

Her predecessor, Nathan Elvery, was paid £180,000 before stepping down from role in March to take charge at West Sussex County Council.

A council report said the rise was needed to ensure pay packets were “sufficiently competitive to recruit and retain a suitably qualified and capable individual within the prevailing market at the time of appointment”.

But Cllr Tim Pollard, leader of Croydon’s Conservative opposition group, said people would “struggle to understand” the need for the hike He said: “I can understand why they have done it, you have to keep up with the market.

“I think people will question it when the role of the chief executive is being reduced [through cuts].”

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