AN MP last night criticised the “jackpot redundancy payments”

made to senior public sector staff.

Redcar MP Ian Swales was speaking after it was revealed the former chief executive of Cleveland Police Authority received £361,950 after leaving the job a year ago.

Joe McCarthy, who earned £112,398 a year, joined the police authority eight years ago from Middlesbrough Council.

The 44-year-old, who has a degree in Italian history and trained as a local government accountant, has since become managing director of Reliance Police Support Services.

It has also emerged that Caroline Llewellyn, Cleveland Chief Constable’s solicitor, received £213,379 redundancy after spending 36 years with the force.

Liberal Democrat Mr Swales said: “While workers in the public sector deserve a fair deal, taxpayers will be rightly horrified by the size of these jackpot payments.”

He said that the Government was looking to reform public sector terms and conditions to avoid excessive payments, while at the same time protecting the rights of low-paid workers.

Cleveland Police are seeking to shed 230 officers following a £17m reduction in its budget.

Steve Matthews, Cleveland Police Federation chairman, said the size of such payments would shock the public.

“When police officers are being forced out of the door these sort of payments are appalling,” he said.

He pointed out that the total of £575,329 for the two payoffs was equivalent to the annual pay for 19 experienced police officers earning £30,000 a year.

“I am gobsmacked at these figures and the people of Cleveland will be as well. It is like winning the Lottery.”

Authority chairman Peter Race yesterday confirmed as the successor to Dave McLuckie, who resigned after he became the subject of a criminal inquiry, defended the redundancy package. He maintained that Mr McCarthy had played a pivotal role in turning around a massive deficit in the force’s finances in 2004 and that the change in management structure would produce savings of £200,000 over five years. Of course, the figures arising from his redundancy are substantial, but reflect the terms and conditions on which he was employed,” he added.

Referring to Mrs Llewellyn’s payout, Cleveland Police’s Chief Constable Sean Price said: “The postholder took voluntary redundancy and subsequently the post was made redundant, which will result in significant savings for the force in the future.”