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Quango rich list
It’s been a bumper week of exposés for our latest campaign, Britain’s Quangos Uncovered, with the TPA team working flat out to help answer the question of who really governs Britain. From front page research and number crunching analysis to an extraordinary investigation and a good, old fashioned protest, this week saw it all.

We kicked things off last week with our revelations of those who are sitting on the boards of these shadowy organisations ([link removed]) that exert so much influence on our lives. This week, in classic TPA style, we can reveal just how much those working in British quangos are costing you ([link removed]) .

Our quango rich list ([link removed]) sensationally revealed that in 2023-24, there were a whopping 1,472 quangocrats with total remuneration over £100,000 and 343 receiving more than £200,000. While total remuneration includes things like salary, pension contributions, bonuses etc. when we just looked at the salaries, a jaw-dropping 315 quango staff are raking in more than the prime minister!
Homes England had the most receiving over £100,000 at 111, followed by the BBC with 90. Alex Mahon, chief executive of Channel 4, had both the highest remuneration, at £993,000 and salary at £619,000 - nice work if you can get it.

These latest findings caused quite the media storm ([link removed]) (even the BBC couldn’t ignore it ([link removed]) ) and splashed the front page ([link removed]) of the Daily Mail ([link removed]) . After being briefed by our research team, John O’Connell cut straight to the point ([link removed]) when he spoke to reporters: “beyond the healthy remuneration, arguably the bigger problem is that in many areas of government policy these quango bosses reign supreme, with minimal ministerial or parliamentary oversight despite the often highly sensitive and significant nature of what their organisation is responsible for.”
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Elsewhere, William Yarwood and lead researcher on the rich list, Callum McGoldrick, hit the airwaves with appearances on Talk ([link removed]) and GB News ([link removed]) . As Callum explained: “33 separate quangos have at least 10 staff earning over £100,000 a year. We hear constantly how nurses are underpaid, teachers are underpaid, and it doesn’t really stack up then that these unelected bodies can have so many staff earning such astronomically high figures.”

It is simply unacceptable that so many quangocrats operate with such little scrutiny or oversight while doling out such enormous pay packets. It’s high time ministers stepped up to the plate and cracked down on these runaway quangos.

Without your help, we’ll never be able to fully uncover the tangled web of quangos and their staff. Will you help us today by clicking here to donate? ([link removed])
A place in the sun
While all these quangocrats are raking it in, some would appear to be sunning it up. Joanna Marchong’s latest investigation reveals that more than 2,000 quango staff have been given the green light to work from overseas ([link removed]) . We’re not talking about the odd trip to France. We’re talking Colombia. Jamaica. Vietnam. And it’s not just the odd week here or there. Some are spending entire years overseas.

And the justifications? If you want to visit your partner who lives abroad, that’s just fine. If your holiday clashes with work commitments, fly away.
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These quangocrats aren’t just out of sight, they’re out of the country. Most people don’t even know where these bodies are based in the UK, let alone that their staff might be dialling in from a beach somewhere, Pina Colada in hand.

If you’re not already worked up enough, check out Joanna’s video above for a full rundown ([link removed]) .
Speaking of sunshine
While much of what these quangos are getting up to may be hidden in the shadows, a not so bright idea has come out of one of these agencies. The Advanced Research and Innovation Agency plans to dish out £50 million to researchers who, among other things, plan to turn down the sunlight ([link removed]) .

The glorious weather we’ve enjoyed over the last week may soon become a thing of the past ([link removed]) if these nutty researchers get their way.
Naturally, our team seized on the opportunity to top up their tans as we headed down to parliament for our own little protest against the plans. Amidst some quizzical looks from tourists, we demanded that MPs intervene to ‘Save our Sunshine’ and remind ministers that we ‘didn’t vote to dim the sun’. As the saying goes, sunlight is the best disinfectant. Have a watch of William’s latest video as he casts away the shadows ([link removed]) from this bonkers plan.
Big Spending Projects Gone Wrong & HS2
When I said it was a busy week, I wasn’t joking. While quangocrats may be pretty careful when it comes to making sure they’re in the money, they’re less concerned about how your money is being spent. Our research team has crunched the numbers and shown just how badly managed some of our big infrastructure projects really are.

Our new research reveals £6.2 billion in cost overruns and 3,372 days (over nine years) of delays ([link removed]) across four major projects, three of which have been mishandled by quangos: the Lower Thames Crossing, Houses of Parliament restoration, NHS digitalisation.
With perfect timing, podcast host Duncan Barkes is joined by Callum and HS2 campaigner Michael Gross for the latest episode of a nation of taxpayers. They discuss what’s going wrong with infrastructure projects and Michael’s campaign: Where’s the money?

You can listen to a nation of taxpayers on Apple Podcasts ([link removed]) , Spotify ([link removed]) , and YouTube ([link removed]) .
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Castle Point Borough Council, the one party regime, the £2 million shame
This week’s blog ([link removed]) comes to us from Cllr Andrew Sheldon, a county councillor in Essex. Andrew runs through the incredibly troubling situation in Castle Point. It is a truly extraordinary state of affairs. Andrew writes that: “Approximately £1.2 million of potentially unlawful payments had been made to senior council officials, by senior council officials, without proper authorisation and deliberate attempts had been made to conceal the truth from councillors and the taxpaying public.”
Indeed, some of those officers who should have been keeping an eye on things received redundancy packages that earned them high spots on this year’s Town Hall Rich List ([link removed]) . Taken together, these failings have left local taxpayers at least £2 million out of pocket. Give Andrew’s shocking rundown a read here. ([link removed])
Tick tock
The TPA’s not the only thing that’s been busy this week.

Our national debt continues to tick up ([link removed]) , adding hundreds of millions of pounds each and every day. Indeed, since we wrote to you last week, £3,801,095,424 has been added to the government credit card.

If ministers really want to get a handle on this, cutting back on some of the stuff above would be a good place to start.

Benjamin Elks
Grassroots Development Manager

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