GREEDY BASTARDS of Great Britain [***SEE ALSO the website http://aftu.webgarden.com]

Here are one hundred more wealth-worshippers who feel that they are superior human beings. They earn at least eight times what the poor buggers on the National Minimum Wage are “awarded”. Is this the kind of inequality that the UK should accept? I would advocate a national campaign of civil disobedience to challenge the grossly irresponsible allocation of public funds. Otherwise, the Chief Executives of greed and selfishness will continue to run rings around the sheepish populace. Let’s resist the unfair and disproportionate distribution of salaries which are an affront to common decency and humanity.
***SEE ALSO http://aftu.webgarden.com
Moya Greene; Chief Executive of the Royal Mail: £1,470,000
Paula Vennells; Chief Executive of the Post Office Limited: £697,000
Malcolm Grant; Provost & President of University College London: £376,190
Richard Ackroyd; Chief Executive of Scottish Water: £336,000
Ed Richards; Chief Executive of Ofcom: £321,749
S Bell; Tram Project Director of tie Limited: £306,780
Sir Mervyn King; former Governor of the Bank of England: £305,764
Sir Paul Stephenson; Commissioner of Metropolitan Police Service: £280,489
Paul Tucker; Deputy Governor of the Bank of England: £258,114
I Coupar; Marketing Director of Lothian Buses: £251,285
Tim Godwin; Deputy Commissioner of Metropolitan Police Service: £246,969
S Assar; Interim Chief Executive of Luton PCT: £242,500
Mark Elms; Headteacher of Tidemill School, Lewisham: £231,400
Jonathan House; Chief Executive of Cardiff City Council: £219,159
W Devlin; Engineering Director of Lothian Buses: £218,367
Sir Norman Bettison; former Chief Constable of West Yorkshire constabulary: £217,956
Dr Gareth Goodier; Chief Executive of Cambridge University trust: £217,500
W Campbell; Operations Director of Lothian Buses: £217,240
N Strachan; Finance Director of Lothian Buses: £216,491
Lord Hamilton; Lord President of the Court of Session: £214,165
Sir Declan Morgan; Lord Chief Justice of the Northern Ireland judiciary: £214,165
Lord Neuberger; Master of the Rolls: £214,165
Lord Phillips; President of the Supreme Court: £214,165
S Baker; Chief Executive Officer of High Peak and Staffordshire Moorlands councils: £213,155
David Bennett; Chief Executive of the Sanctuary Housing Association: £213,000
John Yates; Assistant Commissioner of Metropolitan Police Service: £211,624
MV James; Chief Executive of Carmarthenshire council: £209,498
Sean Price; former Chief Constable of Cleveland constabulary: £208,691
Lord Brown; Supreme Court judge: £206,857
Lord Collins; Supreme Court judge: £206,857
Lady Hale; Supreme Court judge: £206,857
Lord Hope; Supreme Court judge: £206,857
Sir Robert Andrew Morritt; Chancellor of the High Court: £206,857
Chris Allison; Assistant Chief Constable of Metropolitan Police Service: £204,882
Mike Craik; former Chief Constable of Northumbria constabulary: £204,701
Sir Hugh Orde; former Chief Constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland: £202,500
John Belcher; Chief Executive of the Anchor Trust: £202,000
Nigel Pallace; Bi-Borough Executive Director in central London: £200,556
Jacqueline Valin; Headteacher of Southfields Community College: £198,406
Rose Fitzpatrick; Deputy Assistant Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Service: £196,396
S Bruce; Chief Executive of City of Edinburgh council: £196,007
Lyn Carpenter; Bi-Borough Executive Director in central London: £195,265
Ailsa Beaton; Director of Information at the Metropolitan Police Service: £189,896
Andrew Christie; Director of Children’s Services at three central London borough councils: £183,833
H Rissmann; Chief Executive of EICC: £178,191
A Buchan; Chief Executive of Orkney Islands and Shetland Islands councils: £176,919
Colin Mackenzie; Chief Executive of Aberdeenshire council: £174,409
G Tee; Director of Children and Families at City of Edinburgh council: £170,640
Valerie Watts; Chief Executive of Aberdeen City Council: £170,628
A Alexander; Headteacher in Devon County Council: £165,266
T Aitchison; former Chief Executive of City of Edinburgh council: £164,717
Sir William Atkinson; Headteacher at Phoenix School, London: £160,640
Michael Cogher; Director of Legal Services at two central London borough councils: £159,412
Paul Dick; Executive Headteacher at Trinity and Kennet school: £153,829
Jeffrey Risbridger; Headteacher at Saint Cecilia’s: £152,646
Kelvin Simmonds; Headteacher at Danum School, Doncaster: £152,536
D Anderson; Director of City Development at City of Edinburgh council: £150,412
J Inch; former Director of Corporate Services at City of Edinburgh council: £148,971
D McGougan; former Director of Finance at City of Edinburgh council: £148,971
M Turley; Director of Services for Communities at City of Edinburgh council: £148,971
R Stiff; Chief Executive of Angus council: £144,191
Sally Loudon; Chief Executive of Argyll and Bute council: £142,574
Brian Horsburgh; MD of Aberdeen Exhibition and Conference Centre: £141,764
Paul Nurse; Chief Executive of Cancer Research UK: £140,000
Trefor Thomas Morgan; Chief Executive of Cardiff City Council: £139,575
David Clarke; Chief Executive of West Dorset and Weymouth & Portland councils: £132,022
Christine Gore; Director of Corporate Services at Aberdeenshire council: £131,399
Ritchie Johnson; Director of Housing and Social Work at Aberdeenshire council: £131,024
Ian Gabriel; Director of Infrastructure at Aberdeenshire council: £130,914
Sue Bruce; Chief Executive of Aberdeen City Council: £129,698
R Peat; Director of Social Work and Health at Angus council: £128,083
Stewart Carruth; Director of Corporate Governance at Aberdeen City Council: £127,828
Pete Leonard; Director of Housing and Environment at Aberdeen City Council: £127,828
Fred McBride; Director of Social Care and Wellbeing at Aberdeen City Council: £127,828
Gordon McIntosh; Director of Enterprise, Planning and Infrastructure at Aberdeen City Council: £127,828
R Ashton; Director of Neighbourhood Services at Angus council: £125,409
Tim Black; Chief Executive of Marie Stopes International: £125,230
Jeremy Oppenheim; Chief Executive of Jewish Care: £125,000
N Logue; Director of Education at Angus council: £123,967
E Lowson; Director of Infrastructure Services at Angus council: £122,858
E Adair; Operations and Finance Director of the EDI Group: £121,135
M Miller; Chief Social Work Officer at City of Edinburgh council: £117,122
Annette Bruton; Director of Education, Culture and Sport at Aberdeen City Council: £116,725
Deryk Mead; Chief Executive of NCH Action for Children: £116,384
Leslie Busk; Chief Executive of the British Heart Foundation: £115,000
Fiona Reynolds; Chief Executive of the National Trust: £115,000
Cleland Sneddon; Executive Director of Community Services at Argyll and Bute council: £114,905
Douglas Hendry; Executive Director of Customer Services at Argyll and Bute council: £110,947
H Robertson; Assistant Chief Executive at Angus council: £110,767
Alexander MacTaggart; Executive Director of Development at Angus council: £110,562
C McMahon; Director of Corporate Services at Angus council: £108,850
S Hunter; Head of Law and Administration at Angus council: £107,738
Roger Singleton; Chief Executive of Barnardos: £105,027
Andrew Freemantle; Chief Executive of the RNLI: £105,000
Mary Marsh; Chief Executive of the NSPCC: £105,000
Nicholas Payne; Chief Executive of English National Opera: £105,000
I Lorimer; Head of Finance at Angus council: £103,657
Belinda Greer; Joint Head of Education at Stirling and Clackmannanshire councils: £102,855
David Barrie; Chief Executive of the National Art Collections Fund: £100,000
Peter Cardy; Chief Executive of MacMillan Cancer Relief: £100,000
Source:
http://society.guardian.co.uk/salarysurvey/table/0,12406,1042677,00.html

GREEDY BASTARDS of Great Britain [**********SEE ALSO http://aftu.webgarden.com]

Here are another one hundred greedy villains who have been the recipients of excessive generosity from an unwitting public. It is remarkable how many money-grabbers have been knighted or officially recognised for their apparent greatness. Not only do the selfish swine receive a criminal volume of money but they are even applauded by the Establishment. Ultimately, the biggest crime of our time is the cavalier and irresponsible use of rates and taxes by our elected officials who award monstrous remuneration packages. I guess that the names below refuse to look a foolish gift horse in the mouth. All ratespayers should refuse to pay their rates.
*****SEE ALSO http://aftu.webgarden.com
Katherine Kerswell; Group Managing Director of Kent Council: £589,165
L.Hardie; Deputy Chief Executive of South Lanarkshire Council: £543,538
Thomas McDonald; Assistant Director of Development and Regeneration Sevices, Glasgow Council: £520,590
William Docherty; Managing Director, City Building [Glasgow]: £485,698
Steven Kelly; Director of Corporate Services, City Building [Glasgow]: £481,166
Anna Wright; Director of Education & Children’s Services at Reading Council: £392,878
Sean Nolan; Director of Corporate Services at East Sussex Council: £389,880
Robert Booth; Executive Director of Land & Environment Services at Glasgow Council: £382,789
Kenenth Harkness; Head of Service Development at Glasgow Council: £371,610
Joyce Redfearn; Chief Executive of Wigan Council: £343,400
Mark Davies; Chief Executive of Imperial Healthcare Trust: £340,000
Elaine Grieve; Assistant Chief Executive of Orkney Islands Council: £339,610
Patricia McIlquham; Deputy Chief Executive of Dundee City Council: £335,468
Michael Coughlin; Chief Executive of Reading Council: £334,578
A.Kerr; Chief Executive of Reading Council: £328,150
R.Heaton; Executive Director of Resources at Newham Council: £317,137
John Sharkey; Chief Executive, SEC Limited, Glasgow Council: £314,553
Gerald Jones; Chief Executive of Wandsworth Borough Council: £299,925
John Fingleton; Chief Executive of Office of Fair Trading: £275,000
S Robinson; Chief Executive of Cheshire West and Chester Council: £266,000
Ruth Carnall; Chief Executive of NHS London: £265,000
Andrew Stafford; Chief Executive Officer of the Royal Mint: £264,510
Stephen Hughes; Chief Executive of Birmingham Council: £260,360
Chris Williams; Chief Executive of Buckinghamshire Council: £259,438
Geoff Bellingan; Medical Director of University College London Hospital: £255,000
D.P.Martin; Chief Executive and Director of Administration of Wandsworth Council: £254,880
N. Walkley; Chief Executive of Barnet Council: £250,818
C. Tapster; Chief Executive of Hertfordshire Council: £250,351
Andrew Haines; Chief Executive of the Civil Aviation Authority: £250,000
George Black; Chief Executive of Glasgow Council: £248,004
Erika Wenzel; Chief Executive of Cheshire East Council: £247,762
Peter Gilroy; Chief Executive of Kent Council: £243,388
Mark Goldman; Chief Executive of the Heart of England trust: £242,500
K.Crompton; Chief Executive of Haringey Council: £241,657
Joe Duckworth; Chief Executive of Newham Borough Council: £241,483
Dave Smith; Chief Executive of Sunderland Council: £240,445
I.Craig; Managing Director of Lothian Buses: £238,954
C.J.Buss; Director of Finance and Deputy Chief Executive of Wandsworth Council: £238,787
P.Halsall; Chief Executive of Lancashire Council: £238,774
D.White; Chief Executive of Norfolk Council: £238,100
Nick Bell; Chief Executive of Staffordshire Council: £237,737
Will Tuckley; Chief Executive of Bexley Council: £237,336
Derrick Anderson; Chief Executive of Lambeth Borough Council: £235,650
Sir Neil McKay; Chief Executive of East of England SHA: £232,500
Colin Hilton; Chief Executive of Liverpool City Council: £229,555
Sir Leonard Fenwick; Chief Executive of Newcastle NHS Trust: £227,500
David White; Chief Executive of Norfolk County Council: £224,900
Mark Hammond; Chief Executive Officer of West Sussex County Council: £223,451
Paul Bentley; Acting Chief Executive of Ashford and St Peter’s trust: £223,000
Dr Barbara Hakin; Chief Executive of East Midlands SHA: £222,400
David Dalton; Chief Executive of Salford Royal trust: £222,215
Mark Farrar; Chief Executive Officer of the Construction Industry Trading Board: £220,000
Stephen Geraghty; Commissioner of the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission: £210,000
Sir Michael Cahn; Chief Executive of UK Trade and Investment: £205,000
Roger Bright; Chief Executive of the Crown Estate: £200,000
Richard Paniguian; Head of UK Trade and Investment, Defence and Security Organisation: £195,000
Dr Harry Bush; Member of the Civil Aviation Authority: £185,000
Philip Ridal; Finance Director of British Waterways: £185,000
Andy Mckeon; Managing Director of the Audit Commission: £180,000
Eugene Sullivan; Managing Director of the Audit Commission: £180,000
Peter Wilkinson; Managing Director of the Audit Commission: £180,000
Paul Clark; Director of Investment and Asset Management of the Crown Estate: £175,000
Gareth Davies; Managing Director of the Audit Commission: £175,000
Neil MacGregor; Director of the British Museum: £175,000
Martin Evans; Managing Director of the Audit Commission: £170,000
Sir Alisdair Fraser; Director of Public Prosecutions, Northern Ireland: £170,000
Peter Freeman; Chairman of the Competition Commission: £170,000
Tony Redmond; Chairman of CLAE: £170,000
Richard Alderman; Director of the Serious Fraud Office: £165,000
Martin Davidson; Chief Executive of the British Council: £165,000
Nigel Johnson; Corporate Services Director of British Waterways: £165,000
Fiona Adshead; Director General on secondment to the World Health Organisation: £160,000
Sir John Elvidge; Permanent Secretary for the Scottish government: £160,000
Chris Jesnick; Member of the Civil Aviation Authority: £160,000
Stephen Leonard; former director of the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission: £160,000
Dr Kevin Woods; Chief Executive of NHS Scotland: £160,000
Dame Lynne Brindley; Chief Executive of the British Library: £155,000
Anthony Douglas; Chief Executive Officer of the Child Maintenance and Enforcement Commission: £155,000
Mark Grimshaw; Managing Director of the CSA: £155,000
Richard Jackson; Member of the Civil Aviation Authority: £155,000
Paul Jenkins Q.C.; Permanent Secretary for the Treasury Solicitors Department: £155,000
Terry Moran; Chief Executive of Pension, Disability & Carers Service: £155,000
Vince Moran; Operations Director of British Waterways: £155,000
Jim Stirling; Technical Director of British Waterways: £155,000
Richard Thompson; Chief Constable of the Civil Nuclear Constabulary: £155,000
Tim Brown; Chief Executive of Postcomm: £150,000
Alan Davey; Chief Executive of the Arts Council: £150,000
Roy Irwin of the Audit Commission: £150,000
Stella Manzie; Director General, Justice and Communities in Scotland: £150,000
Stuart Mills; Property Director of British Waterways: £150,000
Sir Michael Scholar; Chair of UK Statistics Authority: £150,000
Mark Swann; Member of the Civil Aviation Authority: £150,000
Brian Willmor; Regional Director of the Audit Commission: £150,000
M Williams; Chief Executive of East Devon and South Somerset Councils: £146,828
Colette Paul; Chief Constable of Bedfordshire Constabulary: £133,068
Dame Deirdre Hutton; Chair of the Civil Aviation Authority: £130,000
Professor Douglas Kell; Chief Executive Officer of the Biological Sciences Research Council: £130,000
B Richardson; Parliamentary Counsel at the Cabinet Office: £120,000
Dame Suzi Leather; Chair of the Charity Commission for England and Wales: £100,000
Richard Foster CBE; Chairman of the Criminal Cases Review Commission: £100,000

GREEDY BASTARDS of Great Britain; part three [***SEE ALSO http://aftu.webgarden.com]

The following 100 over-paid folk are from the civil service as quoted by the BBC in 2010. It's really strange but if you attended a meal with others and you helped yourself to a huge volume of food which stacked up on your plate, you would be castigated as being "greedy", yet in our perverse society, it seems perfectly acceptable for an elite group to accumulate enormous salaries while those poor buggers on benefits are expected to live on about eight or nine thousand pounds per year. The selfish swine below may be talented and even hard-working, but their greatest talent is to load their bank account with copious amounts of money from the taxpayer. Is this fair?
Joe Harley; Chief Information Officer of the DWP: £245,000
Sir Jock Stirrup; Chief of the Defence Staff: £240,000
Jeremy Beeton; former Director General of the Government Olympic Executive: £225,000
Clare Chapman; Director General of the Department of Health: £220,000
Paul Hemsley; Director of Finance at the Ordnance Survey: £120,000
David Green of the Crown Prosecution Service: £210,000
Patrick Crawford; Chief Executive at the Export Credits Guarantee Department: £205,000
Lin Homer; Chief Executive of the UK Border Agency: £205,000
Helen Kilpatrick; Director General at the Home Office: £205,000
Steve Lamey; Director General at HM Revenues & Customs: £205,000
DA Shields; Programme Director at OGC: £205,000
Dr Mike Mitchell; Head of National Networks Group: £200,000
D Pitchford; Director at OGC: £200,000
Andrew Tyler; Chief Operating Officer at the Ministry of Defence: £200,000
Christine Gilbert; Her Majesty's Chief Inspector at OFSTED: £195,000
James Hall; Chief Executive, Identity and Passport Service: £195,000
Andrew Manley; Director General at the Ministry of Defence: £195,000
Sir David Normington; Permanent Secretary at the Home Office: £195,000
Keir Starmer; Director of the Crown Prosecution Service: £195,000
Vanessa Lawrence; Chief Executive Officer of the Ordnance Survey: £190,000
Trevor Llanwarne; Government Actuary: £190,000
Andy Nelson; Chief Information Officer at the Ministry of Justice: £190,000
Jane Platt; Chief Executive of National Savings & Investments: £190,000
Nemat Shafiq; Permanent Secretary of the Department for International Development: £190,000
Tim Smith; Chief Executive of the Food Standards Agency: £190,000
Kevin White; Director General, Human Resources at the Home Office: £190,000
Professor Kent Woods; Chief Executive of the MHRA: £190,000
Simon Bowles; Chief Finance Officer at HM Revenue & Customs: £185,000
David Goldstone, formerly of the Government Olympic Executive: £185,000
Sir Leigh Lewis; Permanent Seretary at the DWP: £185,000
Darra Singh; Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus: £185,000
N Smith; Chief Executive at OGC: £185,000
David Behan; Director General of Social Care: £180,000
David Bell; Permanent Secretary at the Department of Education: £180,000
Suma Chakrabarti; Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Justice: £180,000
Chris Last; HR Director General at the DWP: £180,000
Phil Pavitt; Chief Information Officer at HM Revenue & Customs: £180,000
Duncan Selbie; Chief Executive of the Department of Health: £180,000
Philip Collins; Chairman of the Office of Fair Trading: £175,000
Mike Falvey; Chief People Officer at HM Revenue & Customs: £175,000
Jim Gallagher; Director General - Devolution at the Ministry of Justice: £175,000
Mel Groves; former Project Director at the DWP: £175,000
Sir Bill Jeffrey; Permanent Under Secretary at the Ministry of Defence: £175,000
Sir Nicholas Macpherson; Permanent Secretary at HM Treasury: £175,000
Sir Kevin O'Donoghue; Chief of Defence Materiel: £175,000
Peter Ricketts; Head of the Diplomatic Service: £175,000
Air Marshal Peter Ruddock of the Ministry of Defence: £175,000
Nigel Shienwald; HM Ambassador to the United States of America: £175,000
Sir Mark Stanhope; First Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval Staff: £175,000
Jon Thompson; Director General at the Ministry of Defence: £175,000
Kim Darroch; UK Permanent Representative to the European Union: £170,000
John Hirst; Chief Executive at the Met Office: £170,000
Marco Pierleoni; Chief Land Registrar: £170,000
Geoffrey Podger; Chief Executive of the Health & Safety Executive: £170,000
Mike Robinson; Chief Executive of the UK Hydrographic Office: £170,000
Lesley Strathie; Chief Executive Officer at HM Revenue & Customs: £170,000
Sir Stephen Dalton; Chief of the Air Staff; £165,000
Lindsey Davies; Interim Regional Director of Public Health: £165,000
Carolyn Downs; Director General at the Ministry of Justice: £165,000
Sir Nicholas Houghton; Vice Chief of the Defence Staff: £165,000
Lorraine Langham; Director of Corporate Services at OFSTED: £165,000
Sir John McColl; Deputy Supreme Allied Commander, Europe: £165,000
Les Mosco; Director at the Ministry of Defence: £165,000
Hunada Nouss; Finance Director General of the DWP: £165,000
Sir David Richards; Chief of the General Staff: £165,000
R Shostak; Head of Prime Minister's Delivery Unit: £165,000
Moira Wallace; Permanent Secretary of the DECC: £165,000
Martin Bellamy; ICT Director of the Department of Health: £160,000
Robert Devereux; Permanent Secretary of the Department for Transport: £160,000
Helen Edwards; Director General - Justice Policy Group: £160,000
William Emery; Chairman of the Office of Rail Regulation: £160,000
Dave Hartnett; Permanent Secretary for Tax at HM Revenues & Customs: £160,000
Stephen Holt; Director of Change Management at the DWP: £160,000
Melanie Hunt; Director at OFSTED: £160,000
Peter Makeham; Director General at the Home Office: £160,000
Susanna Mason; Director at the Ministry of Defence: £160,000
Sir Jonathan Phillips; former Permanent Secretary at the Northern Ireland Office: £160,000
Nick Ramsay; Director at the Ministry of Justice: £160,000
Sir Trevor Soar; Navy Commander-in-Chief: £160,000
JMG Taylor; Financial Services and Stability Director at HM Treasury: £160,000
Sir Peter Wall; Army Commander-in-Chief: £160,000
Phil Wheatley of the National Offender Management Service: £160,000
Ursula Brennan; Second Permanent Under Secretary at the Ministry of Defence: £155,000
Bill Gunnyeon; Chief Medical Adviser and Chief Scientist at the DWP: £155,000
Archie Hughes; Chief Executive of the Defence Support Group: £155,000
Stephen Love; Chief Constable of Ministry of Defence police: £155,000
Jonathan Stephens; Permanent Secretary of the DCMS: £155,000
Paul Wiles; former Chief Scientific Adviser at the Home Office: £155,000
Mike Clasper; Chair of HM Revenue & Customs: £150,000
Peter Collis; former Chief Land Registrar: £150,000
John Goldup; Director at OFSTED: £150,000
Neil Hayward; Group HR Director at the Ministry of Justice: £150,000
Bruce Houlder QC; Director of Service Prosecutions: £150,000
Nirmal Kotecha of the Department for Transport, Highways Agency: £150,000
Patrick Leeson; Director at OFSTED: £150,000
TW Scholar; second Permanent Secretary at HM Treasury: £150,000
Beverley Shears of the National Offender Management Service: £150,000
Dame Helen Ghosh; Permanent Secretary of Defra: £140,000
Professor Robert Watson; Chief Scientific Adviser of Defra: £135,000
Philip Fletcher; Chairman of Ofwat: £105,000
SOURCE:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10202596

GREEDY BASTARDS of Great Britain; part two [*****SEE ALSO http://aftu.webgarden.com]

Here are one hundred more rogues who are creaming the public purse. I found it very illuminating when pouring over the annual trade union rich list furnished by the Taxpayers Alliance which reveals a lot of hypocrites who speak of socialism whilst enjoying lavish salaries. Even more galling is the fact that Trevor Phillips, head honcho of the ‘Equality Commission’ receives a salary in excess of 100k per annum. Well, it’s a bit rich (if you excuse the pun) for clever Trevor to champion ‘equality’ when he is so handsomely rewarded. I guess that Michael Corleone was correct when he stated to the senator in The Godfather Part II that “we are both part of the same hypocrisy.”
Gordon Taylor of the Professional Footballers’ Association: £856,007
Peter Henderson; director of asset management of Network Rail: £672,000
Tony Fountain; chief executive of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority: £520,000
Cynthia Bower; chief executive of the Care Quality Commission: £440,000
Denis Hone; former chief executive of the Olympic Delivery Authority: £401,000
Howard Shiplee; former director of construction of the Olympic Delivery Authority: £320,000
John Armitt; formerly of the Olympic Delivery Authority: £250,000
Tim Jones; chief executive of the Personal Accounts Delivery: £235,000
Gus O’Donnell; Cabinet Secretary: £235,000
Robin Evans; chief executive of British Waterways: £230,000
Stephen Laws; First Parliamentary Counsel: £230,000
Douglas Erskine-Crum; chief executive of the Horserace Betting Levy Board: £220,000
Lord Mogg; chairman of Ofgem: £210,000
Robert Parker; Parliamentary Counsel: £210,000
John Suffolk; Chief Information Officer for HM Government: £205,000
Michael Bradley MBE, former head of the General Federation of Trade Unions: £203,416 in 2011
Philip Davies; Parliamentary Counsel: £195,000
Godric Smith; former director of communications of the Olympic Delivery Authority: £195,000
Catherine Johnston; Parliamentary Counsel: £190,000
Derek Simpson; former general secretary of Unite, the Union: £186,626
Peter Housden; Permanent Secretary of Communities and Local Government: £185,000
Stephen Lovegrove; Chief Executive of BIS: £185,000
Gill Rider; Head of Civil Service Capability Group: £180,000
Philip Rutnam; Director General of BIS: £180,000
David Cook; Parliamentary Counsel: £175,000
Richard McCarthy; Director General of Housing and Planning: £175,000
Vicky Pryce; Director General of BIS: £175,000
Elizabeth Gardiner; Parliamentary Counsel: £170,000
Adrian Hogarth; Parliamentary Counsel: £170,000
Leonie McLaughlin; Parliamentary Counsel: £170,000
Keith Norman; former head of ASLEF: £167,566 in 2011
Jens Bech; Chief Risk Officer of the Asset Protection Agency: £165,000
Professor John Beddington; Permanent Secretary of BIS: £165,000
Ion Dagtoglou; Chief Investment Officer of the Asset Protection Agency: £165,000
Sir Ken Knight; Chief Fire and Rescue Adviser: £165,000
Sir John Sawers; chief of the Intelligence Sevice, MI6: £165,000
Alex Allan; Chairman of the Joint Intelligence Committee: £160,000
Simon Fraser; Permanent Secretary of BIS: £160,000
Peter Lewis; Chief Executive of the Crown Prosecution Service: £160,000
Howard Orme; Director General of BIS: £160,000
Philip Rycroft; Director General of BIS: £160,000
Professor Adrian Smith; Director General of BIS: £160,000
Edward Stell; Parliamentary Counsel: £160,000
Matt Tee; Permanent Secretary for Government Communications: £160,000
Peter Ward; chief executive of the British Dental Association: £159,506
Jonathan Cunliffe; Prime Minister’s Adviser on International Economic Affairs and Europe: £155,000
Jonathan Evans; director general of the security service, MI5: £155,000
Hayley Rogers; Parliamentary Counsel: £155,000
Mark Russell; Deputy Chief Executive of BIS: £155,000
Alison Littley; Chief Executive of Buying Solutions: £150,000
John McCready; Managing Director of BIS: £150,000
Marc Middleton; Managing Director of BIS: £150,000
Joe Montgomery; Director General of Regions and Communities: £150,000
David Sprackling; Parliamentary Counsel: £150,000
Stephan Wilcke; Chief Executive Officer of the Asset Protection Agency: £150,000
Christine Blower of the National Union of Teachers: £142,363
Russell Hobby of the National Association of Head Teachers: £141,408
Jim McAuslan of the British Air Line Pilots Association: £139,791
Brendan Barber of the Trades Union Congress: £139,634
Professor Cathy Warwick CBE of the Royal College of Midwives: £138,099
Dr Mary Bousted of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers: £137,316
Peter Carter of the Royal College of Nursing in the United Kingdom: £137,267
Sean Morris of the Professional Cricketers Association: £135,639
Douglas Ramsay; Parliamentary Counsel: £135,000
Brian Lightman of the Association of School and College leaders: £134,639
Geoff Lucas of the Headmasters’ and Headmistresses’ Conference: £133,657
Alan Wood of the UFS: £133,216
Brian Scammell; Chief Credit Officer of the Asset Protection Agency: £130,000
Chris Keates of the National Association of Schoolmasters and Union of Women Teachers: £129,571
Mark Le Fanu former head of the Society of Authors: £129,240
Mick Brookes of the National Association of Head Teachers: £129,070
Tim Poil of the Nationwide Group Staff Union: £127,898
Jonathan Baume of the FDA: £127,739
Paul Noon of Prospect: £126,987
David Cockroft of the International Transport Workers Federation: £126,815
Mark V.Brown of Affinity: £125,624
Brian Caton of the Prison Officers’ Association: £125,157
Ian Partridge of Lloyds TSB Group Union: £124,735
Ged Nichols of Accord: £123,053
Len McCluskey Joint General Secretary of Unite, the Union: £122,434
Tony Woodley Joint General Secretary of Unite, the Union: £122,108
Bob Crow of the RMT: £121,687
Ronald A Smith of the Educational Institute of Scotland: £121,237
Paul Kenny of the GMB: £121,000
Mick Stevens of the Union of Democratic Mineworkers, Nottingham Section: £120,563
Janet Paraskeva; First Civil Service Commissioner: £120,000
Billy Hayes of the Communication Workers Union: £119,790
John Hannett of the Union of Shop Distributive and Allied Workers: £118,895
Phil Gray of the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy: £118,714
John Dunford; former head of the Association of School and College Leaders: £118,540
Mark Serwotka General Secretary of the Public and Commercial Services Union: £116,429
Michael Leahy of Community: £115,995
Matthew Wrack of the Fire Brigades Union: £115,724
Sally Hunt of the University and College Union: £115,375
Dr Hamish Meldrum of the British Medical Association: £115,188
John Smith of the Musicians Union: £115,175
Neil Buist of the National Association of Co-operatives Officials: £112,786
Trevor Phillips; chairman of the Equality and Human Rights Commission: £110,000
Dave Prentis General Secretary of Unison: £108,516
Dean Sheehan of the Welsh Rugby Players Association: £103,000
Sources:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10202596

GREEDY BASTARDS of GREAT BRITAIN [See also the website http://aftu.webgarden.com]

If there are numerous underdogs in our society, it logically follows that there is a multitude of overdogs too. This after all appears to be the very essence and inherent flaw in unregulated, free market economies in that they produce winners and losers in a horrible zero-sum game. Here below lurking in the hall of shame are some of those money-grabbers whose very existence is motivated by a love of wealth. Their riches perversely buys them influence and frequently a lenience from the law, rarely afforded to or affordable by the hoi polloi of the inner cities. Hang your heads in shame, you irresponsible, selfish "thieves" in your slick suits.
Motormouth Kelvin MacKenzie once stated that the anarchic youth who engage in looting and rioting are "scum". That may be so, but I would venture to suggest that there is an elite of white collar, suburban "scum" whose activities and attitudes have completely discredited capitalism and which places them on a par with the so-called feral underclass. Underneath are the names of some such individuals. They represent but the tip of a huge, exploitative iceberg that is taking the piss while the large majority must cope with cuts, pay freezes, and much worse. This list is in its infant stages and the amounts are the reported annual income.
Although David Cameron was absolutely correct when he once diagnosed "broken Britain", little did this hypocrite realise that he and the Westminster/Whitehall elite are part of the problem. Why would any young people look up to and respect their political superiors when the personnel of the Establishment are each pocketing disproportionate salaries that are way beyond logic and good sense. Britain is indeed broken and it needs repaired from the top down to the bottom. The human body cannot function if the head is damaged. By the same token, Britain's sickness cannot be cured if the head of the nation (the political class of legislators and mandarins) is malfunctioning.
Admittedly, the list below is a bit random but it ought to illustrate quite clearly how the Establishment are legally stealing from the public purse with the kind of thievery that would have made the Artful Dodger blush with shame. When I consider the overwhelming number of leaders and 'responsible' people earning disgusting amounts of money, I am frankly staggered that the British people allow this injustice to persist. How the foolish populace of the UK have so deferentially accepted this sickening state of affairs beggars belief. Many revolutions have been fought for less. I am livid that Britain prefers to damn Guy Fawkes while the real criminals in the Establishment and business community can continue to take the ****ing piss. Maybe the silly people of the UK and their grossly-overpaid masters actually deserve each other!
The trouble with the British masses is if they assembled at a demonstration, they would all quickly disperse if they were each offered a free pint. Yes folks, the Brits are easily bought, and gone are the days when this nation had backbone and good principles. Now it's every man for himself and to Hell with the consequences. That is the great legacy of Mrs Thatcher. She can take credit for having broken the spirit of the population. Everybody is seeking fame and fortune nowadays. The UK is a nation of wannabees. Instead of wishing to change a corrupt, decaying system, many of the dispossessed aspire to become part of the monster that is devouring them! Rather than protest against the fat cats, Joe Public harbours the hope of also becoming a fat cat one day. Most people are corruptible nowadays. In other words, offer anyone wealth or power or fame and fortune and they would abandon anything and everyone to attain such apparent 'prizes'.
Not that Labour can crow about the legacy of Mrs Thatcher. Mr Blair and Mr Brown presided over lavish pay increases for their cronies in the public sector as a means of currying favour with the opinion-formers and movers and shakers. So-called new Labour was zealous in its attempts to out-flank the Conservatives by allowing monstrous pay rises for the bourgeois elite. Austere Britain is still having to grin and bear the adverse impact of the bonus culture, the expenses scandals, and the pay-offs, pensions, and perks of the uber-rich. Keir Hardie must be spinning in his grave.
What really ought to concern the named individuals here and other fortunates who have been fortunate to be omitted thus far is the legacy that they are leaving for future generations. Their own offspring will grow up in the warped, mistaken belief that success is conditioned by how much wealth one has amassed and that a huge bank account and property portfolio are essential ingredients for a happy, fulfilled existence. The most influential members of the chattering classes will have a lot to account for as others see the bad example that they are setting and seek to follow in their flawed footsteps.
Some of the following figures are now probably out-of-date and inaccurate in so far as they err on the low side. If any of the named human parasites are now earning less than £100,000 per annum, I will gladly remove them.
Why is it that the major politicos now make noises about the disparity of wealth but then don't appear to practise what they preach? There are two likely explanations as to why the greedy won't relinquish their excess wealth. Either they have very demanding spouses who expect nothing less than to be maintained in regal luxury, or else the selfish swines realise that money purchases importance and influence. One gets to sit at the top table, so to speak. In other words, the pathetic pursuit of riches is essentially a desire to acquire a lofty status. A pox on all their mansions.
Ultimately the names and statistics derive from various media intenet sites, so if I am wrong, then so are they. I suppose that we all could pay thanks to the newspapers for originally sourcing such information about various obscene salaries. Of course, the viewspapers claim that their collective whistle-blowing is in the public interest. The real truth is that viewspapers are businesses that need to turn a profit. Consequently, as they are operating in a competitive market-place, they must produce attention-grabbing revelations and scandals in order to earn revenue. In fact, it would be no exaggeration to state that most journalists would knock their grandmother in her zimmer frame over if she was standing in the way of a juicy news story. The media have about as many scruples as Genghis Khan, and therefore their nonsense about the 'public interest' can be more aptly translated as self-interest.
The wealth-worshippers are as follows:
Ana Botin of Santander: £4 million
Mark Byford: £949,000 pay-off from the BBC
Mark Carney; Governor of the Bank of England: £874,000
David Mobbs of Nuffield Health: £850,000 in 2011
Tim O'Toole of First Group: £846,000
David Abraham; Chief Executive of Channel Four: £744,000
Sir Antonio Pappano of the Royal Opera House: £741,403 in 2011
Mark Thompson; former director-general of the BBC earned £664,000
Chris Moyles; BBC Radio One disc jockey: £630,000
Lord Burns of Santander: £600,000
Andrew Marr; BBC presenter: £580,000
Sir David Higgins of Network Rail: £560,000
Dean Finch of National Express: £550,000
Jay Hunt; Chief Creative Officer of Channel Four: £542,000
David Brown of Go-Ahead: £510,000
Fiona Bruce; BBC television presenter: £500,000
Lord Hall; Director General of the BBC: £450,000
Jez Maiden of National Express: £420,000
Jana Bennett; director of BBC Vision: £412,000
Patrick Butcher of Network Rail: £382,000
Ross Kemp; BBC actor: £380,000
Andrew Wolstenholme of Crossrail: £380,000
John Humphrys; BBC Radio Four presenter: £375,000
Peter Salmon; BBC North director: £375,000
Robin Gisby of Network Rail: £360,000
Simon Kirby of Network Rail: £360,000
Sidney Barrie earned £349,000 when previously employed by First Group
Darren Cattell formerly of Mid Staffordshire NHS Foundation Trust: £340,000 in 2012
Stephen Montgomery of ScotRail: £333,000
Caroline Thomson; BBC chief operating officer: £333,000
Zarin Patel; BBC director: £329,000
Keith Down of Go-Ahead: £326,000
Tim Davie; BBC director: £325,000
Lucy Adams; BBC director: £320,000
Helen Boaden; director of BBC news: £320,000
Sharon Baylay; BBC director: £310,000
Pat Loughrey; BBC director: £300,000
Peter Vicary-Smith of the Consumers' Association: £300,000 in 2012
Richard Sambrook; BBC director: £299,880
James Purnell of the BBC: £295,000
Jan Filochowski of West Hertfordshire Hospitals trust: £282,500
Bal Samra; BBC director: £280,500
Jeff Carr earned £280,000 when previously employed by First Group
Jay Hunt; controller of BBC one: £265,000
Sir Robert Naylor of University College London Hospitals: £262,500
Bernard Hogan-Howe; Chief Constable of the London Metropolitan Police: £260,088
Dominic Coles; Chief Operating Officer at the BBC: £257,500
David Nicholson; Chief Executive of the NHS: £255,000
Sir Ron Kerr of Guy's and St Thomas' Foundation trust: £254,000
Professor Stephen Smith of Imperial Healthcare: £250,250
Roly Keating; director of archive content at the BBC: £250,000
Peter Morris of Barts and the London trust: £247,500
Roger Mosey; BBC director of London 2012: £241,230
Lord Igor Judge; the Lord Chief Justice: £240,000
John Linwood; Chief Technology Officer at the BBC: £240,000
John Yorke of BBC Vision: £238,119
Edward Williams; BBC director: £225,940
Geoff Alltimes of Hammersmith and Fulham Borough Council: £225,785
Danny Cohen; controller of BBC Three: £225,000
John Devaney of National Express: £225,000
Richard Deverell; Chief Operating Officer at the BBC: £225,000
Janice Hadlow; controller of BBC Two: £225,000
John Foster of Islington Borough Council: £223,385
Erik Huggers; BBC director: £223,000
David McNulty of Surrey County Council:£222,053
John Cooper of CrossCountry: £222,000 in 2011 according to the Daily Telegraph
Derek Myers of Kensington and Chelsea Borough Council £220,936
Nicholas Eldred of BBC operations group: £219,751
Roger Kelly of Gateshead Council: £219,521
Emma Swain of BBC Vision: £217,505
Roger Wright; controller of BBC Radio Three: £215,322
Chris Day of BBC finance: £211,500
Andy Parfitt; controller of Radio One: £211,000
Anne Morrison; director of training and development at the BBC: £210,069
Mark Damazer; controller of BBC Radio Four and Radio Seven: £210,000
Joanna Killian of Essex County Council: £210,000
Chris Kane; Head of Corporate Real Estate at the BBC: £206,992
Sir Liam Donaldson earned at least £205,000 as Chief Medical Officer
Andy Griffee; editorial director at the BBC: £205,000
Bob Shennan; controller of BBC Radio Two and Radio Six: £205,000
Nicolas Brown; director of drama production at the BBC: £200,000
Christine Connelly; Chief Information Officer for the department of health: £200,000
Graham Ellis of BBC audio & music: £200,000
Peter Horrocks; director of global news at the BBC: £200,000
Sir Bob Kerslake; Head of the Civil Service: £200,000
Heather Lawrence OBE; chief executive of the Chelsea and Westminster NHS trust: £200,000
Peter Lewis of Haringey Borough Council: £200,000
James Naughtie; BBC Radio Four presenter: £200,000
Gabriel Scally; regional director of public health: £200,000
Stuart Smith; formerly of Liverpool City Council received £198,568 plus £147,000 redundancy
Lord Justice Leveson: £196,707
Sir Jeremy Heywood; Cabinet Secretary: £195,000
Richard Klein; controller of BBC Radio Four: £195,000
Stephen Mitchell; Head of Programmes: £195,000
Tom Archer of BBC Vision: £193,600
Stephen Kavanagh: Chief Constable of Essex Police: £192,163
Liam Keelan; controller of BBC daytime: £190,550
Dorothy Prior; controller of production resource: £190,500
Peter White; chief executive officer at BBC finance: £190,550
Michael Gooddie; a director at the BBC: £190,000
Alastair Hamilton; Chief Executive of Invest NI: £190,000
John Vickerman; head of HR at the BBC: £190,000
George Entwistle of BBC Vision: £189,625
Frances Allcock of BBC People: £188,100
Mark Lloyd of Cambridgeshire County Council: £186,167
Ken MacQuarrie; director of BBC Scotland: £185,000
Menna Richards; director of BBC Wales: £185,000
Adrian Van Klaveren; controller of Radio Five Live: £185,000
Sir Nicholas Young of The Red Cross: £184,000
Robert Johnston; Reward Director at the BBC: £183,750
Anabel Hoult of Save The Children: £181,930
Sir Peter Fahy; Chief Constable of Greater Manchester Police: £181,455
Chris Sims; Chief Constable of West Midlands Police: £181,455
Barbara Slater; director of BBC sport: £180,000
John Tate; director of Policy & Strategy at the BBC: £180,000
Keith Beal; programme director at the BBC: £179,725
Sally Debonnaire of BBC Vision: £178,500
Jonathan Michael; chief executive of Guy's and St Thomas' NHS trust (London): £178,000
Mark Kortekaas of Future Media & Technology at the BBC: £175,000
Mark Linsey of BBC Vision: £175,000
Kerstin Mogull of Future Media & Technology at the BBC: £175,000
David Salisbury; director of immunisation: £175,000
All High Court judges receive £174,481
Dr Mike Anderson; medical director of the Chelsea and Westminster NHS trust: £170,000
Simon Nelson of BBC Vision: £170,000
Beverley Tew of BBC Finance: £170,000
Sir Mark Gilmore; Chief Constable of West Yorkshire Police: £169,359
Alan Yentob; BBC director: £168,300
Jacqueline Brandreth-Potter; head of brand & planning at the BBC: £167,145
David Jordan of Executive Support & Projects at the BBC: £167,000
James Lancaster of BBC Vision: £166,464
Seetha Kumar; controller of BBC online: £165,000
Francesca Unsworth; head of newsgathering at the BBC: £165,000
Liz Rylatt of BBC finance: £164,646
Paul White; chief executive of Barts and the London NHS trust: £164,500
Justin Forsyth of Save The Children: £163,000
Karen Boswell of East Coast: £161,000 according to the Daily Telegraph
Sara Thornton; Chief Constable of Thames Valley Police: £160,290
Michael Barton; Chief Constable of Durham Constabulary: £160,000
Ann Lloyd; Chief Executive of NHS Wales: £160,000
Dame Gillian Morgan; Welsh Permanent Secretary: £160,000
John Turner; finance director at the BBC: £160,000
Helen Normoyle; head of audiences at the BBC: £159,600
Derek Smith; chief executive of Hammersmith hospitals NHS trust (London): £158,508
Jon Murphy; Chief Constable of Merseyside Police: £157,260
Sue Sim; Chief Constable of Northumbria Police: £157,260
Michael Holden of Directly Operated Railways: £156,100
Robert Naylor; chief executive of University College London hospitals NHS trust: £156,000
Nicholas Newman of Future Media & Technology at the BBC: £155,250
David Edwards; chief executive of Cardiff and Vale NHS trust: £155,000
David Holdsworth of BBC journalism group: £155,000
Dr Tony Jewell; Welsh chief medical officer: £155,000
Sir Hugh Taylor: Permanent Secretary of the department of health: £155,000
Alex Marshall; Chief Constable of Hampshire Police: £154,233
Rachel Currie; HR director at the BBC: £153,983
Rahul Chakkara of Future Media & Technology at the BBC: £153,750
Peter Reading; chief executive of University hospitals of Leicester NHS trust: £152,500
Steve Finnigan; Chief Constable of Lancashire Police: £151,215
Ian Learmonth; Chief Constable of Kent Police: £151,215
Shaun Sawyer; Chief Constable of Devon and Cornwall Police: £151,215
Clare Dyer; HR director at the BBC: £150,000
Mark Gottlieb; Director of Marketing, Communications & Audiences at the BBC: £150,000
Sarah Montague; BBC Radio Four presenter: £150,000
Matthew Postgate of Future Media & Technology at the BBC: £150,000
Mark Friend of Audio & Music at the BBC: £148,512
Mark Britnell; chief executive of University hospital Birmingham NHS trust: £148,500
David Crompton; Chief Constable of South Yorkshire Police: £148,194
Colin Port; Chief Constable of Avon & Somerset Police: £148,194
Martin Richards; Chief Constable of Sussex Police: £148,194
Peter Vaughan; Chief Constable of South Wales: £148,194
Neil McKay; chief executive of Leeds teaching hospitals NHS trust: £147,000
Ben Stephenson; controller of drama commissioning at the BBC: £145,000
Peter Clifton; head of editorial development at the BBC: £144,200
Boris Johnson; Mayor of London: £143,911
David Cameron MP; Prime Minister: £142,500
David Highton; chief executive of Oxford Radcliffe hospitals NHS trust: £142,500
Malcolm Stamp; chief executive of Addenbrooke's NHS trust (Cambridge University teaching hospitals trust): £142,260
Chris Eyre; Chief Constable of Nottinghamshire Police: £142,143
John Bercow MP; Speaker of the House of Commons: £142,000
Andy Coulson; former Director of Communications for the Conservative Party earned £275,000 in that role and 'only' £140,000 as the Prime Minister's Director of Communications
Mary Hockaday; head of BBC newsroom: £140,000
Alex Salmond; First Minister of Scotland: £140,000
Ed Miliband MP; Leader of the Opposition: £139,355
Andy Bliss; Chief Constable of Hertfordshire Police: £139,119
Simon Cole; Chief Constable of Leicestershire Police: £139,119
Mick Creedon; Chief Constable of Derbyshire Police: £139,119
Mike Cunningham; Chief Constable of Staffordshire Police: £139,119
Tim Hollis; Chief Constable of Humberside: £139,119
David Shaw; Chief Constable of West Mercia Police: £139,119
David Whatton; Chief Constable of Cheshire Police: £139,119
Lesley Swarbrick; HR director at the BBC: £138,600
Derek O'Gara; finance director at the BBC: £138,000
Andrew Cash; chief executive of Sheffield teaching Hospitals NHS trust: £137,500
Mike Deegan; chief executive of Central Manchester and Manchester children's University NHS trust: £137,500
Phil Gormley; Chief Constable of Norfolk Police: £136,092
Lynne Owens; Chief Constable of Surrey Police: £136,092
Vin Ray; Director of BBC College of Journalists: £135,188
Stuart Welling; chief executive of Brighton and Sussex hospitals NHS trust: £135,109
Mark Goldman; chief executive of Birmingham Heartlands and Solihull (teaching) NHS trust: £135,000
Gareth Hall of the Welsh department of the economy and transport: £135,000
Peter Johnston; director of BBC Northern Ireland: £135,000
Dr Gwyn Thomas; director of Informing Healthcare: £135,000
Nick Clegg MP; Deputy Prime Minister: £134,565
George Osborne MP; Chancellor of the Exchequer: £134,565
All British cabinet ministers receive £134,565
Jo Woods; radio finance director at the BBC: £134,003
Simon Ash; Chief Constable of Suffolk Constabulary: £133,068
Martin Baker; Chief Constable of Dorset Constabulary: £133,068
Jacqui Cheer; Chief Constable of Cleveland Constabulary: £133,068
Tim Madgwick; acting Chief Constable of North Yorkshire constabulary: £133,068
Simon Parr; Chief Constable of Cambridgeshire Constabulary: £133,068
Mark Polin; Chief Constable of North Wales Constabulary: £133,068
Jeff Farrar; temporary Chief Constable of Gwent Constabulary: £133,068
Patrick Geenty; Chief Constable of Wiltshire Constabulary: £133,068
Colette Paul; Chief Constable of Bedfordshire Constabulary: £133,068
Adrian Lee; Chief Constable of Northamptonshire Constabulary: £133,068
Carwyn Jones; First Minister of Wales: £132,862
David Roberts; chief executive of University hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS trust: £132,857
Bernard Lawson; acting Chief Constable of Cumbria Constabulary: £130,044
Michael Matthews; acting Chief Constable of Gloucestershire Constabulary: £130,044
Andy Parker; Chief Constable of Warwickshire Constabulary: £130,044
Neil Rhodes; Chief Constable of Lincolnshire Constabulary: £130,044
Jackie Roberts; Chief Constable of Dyfed-Powys Constabulary: £130,044
Lorraine Bewes; director of finance of the Chelsea and Westminster NHS trust: £130,000
Maggie Boyle; chief executive of Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen hospitals NHS trust: £130,000
Jeff Buggle of the Welsh department of health and social services: £130,000
Rachel Stock; Resourcing Director at the BBC: £128,000
Gareth Goodier; chief executive of Royal Brompton and Harefield NHS trust (London): £127,500
Barry Johns; chief executive of West Midlands metropolitan ambulance service NHS trust: £127,500
David Jackson; chief executive of Bradford hospitals NHS trust: £127,360
David Moss; chief executive of Southampton University hospitals NHS trust: £126,500
Loretta Minghella of Christian Aid: £126,072
Alec McGivan; Head of BBC Outreach: £125,557
Sue Inglish; head of political programmes at the BBC: £125,000
Ed Llewellyn; Prime Minister's Chief of Staff: £125,000
Stephen Day; chief executive of Norfolk and Norwich University hospital NHS trust: £124,000
Jane Perrin; chief executive of Swansea NHS trust: £124,000
Julie Acred; chief executive of Southern Derbyshire acute hospitals NHS trust: £122,500
John de Braux; chief executive of Epsom and St Hellier NHS trust: £122,500
Jessica Cecil; head of BBC director-general's office: £122,500
Jane Collins; chief executive of Great Ormond Street hospital for children NHS trust (London): £122,500
Ian Hamilton; chief executive of St George's healthcare NHS trust (London): £122,500
Cally Palmer; chief executive of Royal Marsden NHS trust (London): £122,500
Alix Pryde; Controller of Distribution at the BBC: £122,500
Stephen Greep; chief executive of Hull and East Yorkshire hospitals NHS trust: £122,400
Julian Nettel; chief executive of St Marys NHS trust: £121,566
David Astley; chief executive of East Kent hospitals NHS trust: £121,417
Sheila Foley; chief executive of East London and the City mental health trust: £120,000
Mark Hackett; chief executive of Royal Wolverhampton hospitals NHS trust: £120,000
Bob Hudson of the Welsh department of health and social services: £120,000
Anna Mallett of Business Strategy at the BBC: £120,000
Martin McGuinness; Deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland: £120,000
Amanda Pritchard; deputy chief executive of the Chelsea and Westminster NHS trust: £120,000
Peter Robinson; First Minister of Northern Ireland: £120,000
Mark Goldring of Oxfam: £119,560
Dame Barbara Stocking of Oxfam: £119,560
Peter Bradley; chief executive of London ambulance service trust: £118,000
Moira Britton; chief executive of Tees and north-east Yorkshire NHS trust: £117,500
Cornelius Egan; chief executive of Bradford community health NHS trust : £117,500
Sally Gorham; chief executive of Waltham, Leyton & Leytonstone (London): £117,500
Mike Atkin; chief executive of Leeds community and mental health services teaching NHS trust: £117,000
Christine Daws; finance director of the Welsh government: £115,000
Simon Dean of the Welsh health and social services department: £115,000
William Greswell; Controller of BBC Vision: £115,000
Paul Greeves; Head of Safety at the BBC: £114,400
Daniel Moylan earned £112,599 when previously employed by Transport for London
Nigel Fisher; chief executive of South-west London and St George's mental health NHS trust: £112,500
John MacDonald; chief executive of Queen's medical centre, Nottingham University hospital NHS trust: £112,500
Caroline Gover; Head of Business Continuity at the BBC: £112,425
Graham Nix; chief executive of United Bristol healthcare NHS trust: £112,000
Alice Webb; programme director at the BBC: £112,000
Peter Morris; chief executive of South Manchester University hospitals NHS trust: £111,000
Therese Davis; chief nurse of the Chelsea and Westminster NHS trust: £110,000
Bernard Galton; HR director of the Welsh government: £110,000
Derek Griffin; chief executive of Cafcass Cymru: £110,000
Carolyn Miller, formerly of Merlin, is rumoured to have earned £110,000 in 2011 (according to the Daily Telegraph, 5th August 2013)
Chris Patten of the BBC: £110,000
Paul Smith; Head of Editorial Standards at the BBC: £110,000
Martin Sykes; chief executive of Value Wales: £110,000
Angela Peddar; chief executive of Royal Devon and Exeter healthcare NHS trust: £109,500
Will Jackson: Head of Strategy at the BBC: £108,000
Peter Coles; chief executive of Whipps Cross University hospital NHS trust (London): £107,500
Erville Millar; chief executive of Camden & Islington mental health and social care trust: £107,500
Richard Davies of the Welsh department of public services and performance: £105,000
Mike Hopkins of the Welsh lifelong learning and providers decision: £105,000
Roy Male; chief executive of Blackpool Victoria hospital NHS trust: £105,000
Sue Ross; chief executive of Selby and York primary care trust: £105,000
Nick Temple; chief executive of Tavistock and Portman NHS trust (London): £105,000
Dr Jane Wilkinson; Deputy Chief Medical Officer of Wales: £105,000
Richard Addy of the BBC Journalism Group: £104,000
Malcolm Lowe-Lauri; chief executive of Kings College hospital NHS trust (London): £104,000
Liam Hayes; chief executive of Doncaster and south Humber NHS trust: £103,161
Sue Assar; chief executive of Central Manchester primary care trust: £102,500
Stuart Bell; chief executive of South London and Maudsley NHS trust: £102,500
Brian Milstead; chief executive of Royal Cornwall hospitals NHS trust: £102,500
Nicola Sturgeon; Deputy First Minister of Scotland: £100,748
Geoffrey Dennis of Care International: £100,000
Kate Fall; Prime Minister's Deputy Chief of Staff: £100,000
Peter Murrell; SNP Chief Executive: £100,000
Christine Willis; chief executive of North Tees primary care trust: £100,000

Charles Walker, an arrogant MP [see also http://aftu.webgarden.com]

On the eleventh of July 2013 it was revealed that the House of Commons MPs could look forward to a lovely pay rise, conveniently beyond the next general election. Imagine the difficulty that they might encounter on the proverbial doorsteps if they campaigned at the 2015 national beauty contest shortly after a pay increase had been implemented!
Anyhow, while the salary increase has been cleverly deferred until just beyond the next national poll, some MPs were expressing their unease at the pending pay award. However, not every parliamentarian was cringing with embarrassment.
One Charles Walker stepped forth to be interviewed for Radio Bore's 'The World Tonight' later that same day. Mr Walker proceeded to pour scorn upon Michael Gove's commendable attitude that "they" could "shove" his imminent pay rise. Well, an exorcised Mr Walker denounced Mr Gove and others who had expressed similar sentiments as "crass".
Mr Walker then went on to brazenly state that not only would he gladly accept his pay rise but that he had already planned to spend it upon his children. If you are a docile, glass half full creature, you might want to applaud Mr Walker for lovingly revealing that he is a devoted father. However, if you are a glass half empty specimen like yours truly, then you have to believe that with a generous salary of circa 65k per annum, Mr Walker's offspring already want for nothing from Daddy. Quite why Mr Walker feels that his children need to bear the fruits of his future windfall is beyond the reaches of my pretty little head.
However, here is the grim reality of Mr Walker's circumstances. I recently performed a study to ascertain what are the safest seats in the UK, and guess whose constituency just happened to be numbered amongst the 25 safest parliamentary seats? Yep, Mr Walker is the custodian of the Broxbourne seat, which is such a stronghold that clearly he can make bold pronouncements on the airwaves and be immune from any possible electoral repercussions.
Well, I exhort the hard-pressed citizens of leafy Broxbourne to mobilise a candidate who challenges Mr Walker whose smug complacency manifested itself in a shameless acceptance of his future pay award. Surely there might be several thousand folk in Broxbourne whose indignation just might be sufficiently aroused, or are you too comatose to confront the arrogant Mr Walker? Personally, I found his defiant stance all too reminiscent of a certain Mr Alan B'stard, MP.

Britain's Dangerous Seats [an extract from http://psephologist.blog.com]

I have already compiled a list on this blog page of the 25 safest seats in the House of Commons. In fact they are so secure that they could be described as “ultra safe”. Clearly, if there are indeed safe seats in which the incumbent MP or party only has to turn up to win the next contest at such a constituency, it must logically follow that various seats are the opposite of “safe”……. dangerous, in other words.
Dangerous is a slighty peculiar word as it suggests that the seat at Westminster is bad for the health of its user. That might be pushing melodrama a tad too far, but there are certainly a whole host of constituencies where the MP’s tenure is indeed tenuous as he or she won election to parliament in May 2010 on the back of a wafer-thin majority.
In fact, not only was the eventual outcome of the last British general election rather close, at least in so far as no party was able to command an overall majority, but I discovered whilst rummaging through all the results that there was a huge amount of constituency contests which were also mighty close. I have therefore taken the trouble to record the following forty-one constituencies where the winning margin didn’t even exceed one thousand votes.
Most of these seats will form the heart of the electoral battleground at the next national poll as they will be termed as “key marginals”. Obviously every political party aims in theory to win every constituency that they contest, but I have highlighted the party which will be targeting each of the listed seats. However, although about half of the listed seats are indeed dangerous and definitely up for grabs, the statistics are also slightly misleading. For example, if Labour was to enjoy any kind of swing at the next general election (and the consensus of opinion is that they will recover from their 2010 setback) then the seats where Labour won narrowly in 2010 will be much safer in 2015.
Similarly, there are many constituencies not included where the current parliamentary majority may be several thousand, but again a notable swing to Labour could place many other incumbents in peril at the next national beauty contest. Therefore, the enclosed list comprises the forty-one seats that incurred the slenderest winning margin in 2010. It does not automatically follow that in every instance, such constituencies will produce a photo-finish again. Clear as mud?
Amber Valley: Conservative majority – 536; Labour target
Ashfield: Labour majority – 192; Liberal Democrat target
Bolton West: Labour majority – 92; Conservative target
Bradford East: Liberal Democrat majority – 365; Labour target
Broxtowe: Conservative majority – 389; Labour target
Camborne and Redruth: Conservative majority – 66; Liberal Democrat target
Cardiff North: Conservative majority – 194; Labour target
Carlisle: Conservative majority – 853; Labour target
Chesterfield: Labour majority – 549; Liberal Democrat target
Derby North: Labour majority – 613; Conservative target
Dorset Mid and Poole North: Liberal Democrat majority – 269; Conservative target
Dudley North: Labour majority – 649; Conservative target
Edinburgh South: Labour majority – 316; Liberal Democrat target
Fermanagh and South Tyrone: Sinn Fein majority – 4; Unionist target
Great Grimsby: Labour majority – 714; Conservative target
Hampstead and Kilburn: Labour majority – 42; a Conservative and Liberal Democrat target
Hendon: Conservative majority – 106; Labour target
Hull North: Labour majority – 641; Liberal Democrat target
Lancaster and Fleetwood: Conservative majority – 333; Labour target
Morecambe and Lunesdale: Conservative majority – 866; Labour target
Newton Abbot: Conservative majority – 523; Liberal Democrat target
Norwich South: Liberal Democrat majority – 310; Labour target
Oldham East and Saddleworth: Labour majority – 103 [The majority increased in 2011]; Liberal Democrat target
Oxford West and Abingdon: Conservative majority – 176; Liberal Democrat target
Rochdale: Labour majority – 889; Liberal Democrat target
Sheffield Central: Labour majority – 165; Liberal Democrat target
Sherwood: Conservative majority – 214; Labour target
Solihull: Liberal Democrat majority – 175; Conservative target
Southampton Itchen: Labour majority – 192; Conservative target
Stockton South: Conservative majority – 332; Labour target
Swansea West: Labour majority – 504; Liberal Democrat target
Telford: Labour majority – 978; Conservative target
Thurrock: Conservative majority – 92; Labour target
Truro and Falmouth: Conservative majority – 435; Liberal Democrat target
Walsall North: Labour majority – 990; Conservative target
Warwickshire North: Conservative majority – 54; Labour target
Waveney: Conservative majority – 769; Labour target
Weaver Vale: Conservative majority – 991; Labour target
Wells: Liberal Democrat majority – 800; Conservative target
Wirral South: Labour majority – 531; Conservative target
Wolverhampton South West: Conservative majority – 691; Labour target
*See also http://psephologist.blog.com
 

Britain's Safest Seats [an extract from http://psephologist.blog.com]

What constitutes a safe seat? Let me throw the following suggestion out there. First of all, it is not sufficient to state that a seat is safe if the elected Member of Parliament possesses more than half of the vote. At Bristol North East in 1970, Robert Adley accumulated more than fifty per cent of the votes cast, but his majority was a measly 462. This may be an extreme example, but it does illustrate that just because Candidate A has more votes than all the other candidates added together, this does not automatically render he or she the custodian of a safe seat.

I would argue that a seat is safe (indeed ultra-safe) if the MP’s majority is greater than the total votes polled by the other candidates. I am guessing that one will struggle to find too many occasions when this safe seat scenario has not been valid. One occasion when such a safe seat is indeed unsafe is at a by-election. Glasgow East in 2008 illustrates this exception.

Anyhow, now that the Boundary Commission’s most recent recommendations have regrettably been mothballed, I have taken the liberty of pouring over all the 650 constituency results from the most recent British general election charade in May 2010. Applying my criteria, I was surprised to find only 25 seats which fall into my safe seat category. I think that we can safely say that there are a great many more constituencies where the current incumbent can sleep safely in their bed in advance of their next beauty contest in 2015. Therefore, it might be more prudent to define my findings as ultra-safe seats, in other words, the kind of constituency contests which are basically non-contests, the political equivalent of a five furlong horse race involving a champion sprinter competing against three or four donkeys. The listed constituencies consequently can be described as Britain’s safest 25 seats, where to coin a phrase, the incumbent MP ‘only has to turn up to win’. You won’t find too may high profile politicians and front-bench spokespersons campaigning in such constituencies, because their result will be deemed a foregone conclusion. Instead, those persons living within the confines of a key marginal will instead have the joy or pain of a multitude of heavyweight politicos tramping up and down their shopping precincts and beyond, ensuring that every possible vote can be squeezed out of such target seats at the next national poll.

Meanwhile, here are the 25 seats that appear to be ‘safe as houses’, five of which are in the current possession of the Conservative Party while the Labour Party currently lays claim to seventeen such Westminster strongholds. In the list underneath, the MPs are Conservative, unless otherwise stated. Only thirteen are located in England’s green and pleasant land, while there are none in Wales. Northern Ireland boasts two such ultra-safe seats whilst north of the border, there are no fewer than ten mega-safe seats. The MPs of such fiefdoms will not thank me for publishing these findings as perversely there is nothing that galvanises people more than the thought that they and their vote are taken for granted. Could a surprise therefore be on the cards? I doubt this somehow!   

[compiled by Gary Watton; author of The Celtic Fringe (GW Publications, 2012) under the anagram pseudonym of 'Grant Toway']

Beaconsfield
Belfast West [Sinn Fein]
Birkenhead [Labour]
Bootle  [Labour]
Chelsea and Fulham
Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill [Labour]
Down North [Independent Unionist]
Dunbartonshire West [Labour]
Easington  [Labour]
East Ham [Labour]
Glasgow North East  [Labour]
Glasgow South West  [Labour]
Glenrothes  [Labour]
Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath  [Labour]
Knowsley  [Labour]
Maldon
Motherwell and Wishaw  [Labour]
Orkney and Shetland [Liberal Democrat]
Paisley and Renfrewshire South  [Labour]
Rayleigh and Wickford
Richmond (Yorkshire)
Rutherglen and Hamilton West  [Labour]
South Holland and The Deepings  [Labour]
Tottenham  [Labour]
West Ham  [Labour]

Britain's Fascist Regime

Britain is a fascist democracy. A what? I hear you say. Seriously, folks. Our parents, grandparents, and assorted ancestors went to war in the early 1940s seemingly to defeat the disease of fascism, or more particularly Nazism. However, fascism is still alive and thriving today in Britain and the western world, many decades after the heroic sacrifices of our predecessors. Permit me to explain.

Well, first of all, let us briefly tackle the myth that Britain fought and conquered fascism in the early 1940s. The reality is that the Nazi brand of fascism drew its racist inspiration from an Englishman by the name of Chamberlain: Houston Stewart Chamberlain [who married into the Wagner family]. Nazism was based upon totally misguided racial theories. The Japanese harboured similar racialist tosh during their barbaric flexing of muscles for a decade up to the necessary dropping of the atom bombs. Fascism was not defeated in 1945. It is prevalent in Britain and the First World. It is no longer a racist ideology of gobbledygook, but instead has become a lot more subtle.

Instead, I would argue that fascism is derived primarily from the Nietzschean concept of the Supermen – individuals who by dint of their skills and talent are supposedly superior to other lesser mortals whom he termed Untermenschen. Well, speaking as a self-respecting Untermensch, I live in a society where celebrities, sporting superstars, business leaders, politicians, and the royal scroungers all earn amounts of money which far exceed the income and ‘wealth’ of the great unwashed. How can it be permissible if fat cat bankers and MPs are not willing to get out of bed for less than about sixty thousand pounds per annum whilst they exhort many millions of the populace to make do with the minimum wage? Why are some people much more handsomely rewarded than others? Is this merely a manifestation of a meritocracy where the high-flying achievers acquire much more wealth and rewards than the under-achievers? Why do the middle-class professionals get exorcised when their retirement funds or pensions are jeopardised and are strangely silent about the have-nots in our selfish society? Could it be that many folk feel that their university education has earned them the right to become a two or three-car family with a holiday home or regular holidays abroad whilst the uneducated should content themselves with much less? Is this not fascism: the belief that some people are more superior than others and deserve much more? This is fascism in its purest, impure concept.

I would venture to state that it is a case of meritocracy gone mad and is instead in keeping with Nietszchean fascism, the notion that certain people are more superior than others and that these Ubermensch deserve more wealth than the Untermensch. The government policy as practised by administration after administration, regardlesss of their apparent political label, is one of containment of the grievances of the underdogs and doing the bare minimum to redistribute income and wealth. No government has the moral courage to confront the great taboo of British politics and society which is to demand that the Head of State and her vast entourage pay their fair share and make a suitable contribution to the economy. It seems that our political leaders are terrified of questioning the royal scrooges in case they take umbrage and refuse to confer knighthoods and such awards. Clearly, patronage is very much part and parcel of the British Establishment. It simpy won’t do to offend the monarch whilst the greed of the monarchy is itself offensive to any sensible observer.  Perhaps John Lydon, vocalising in 1977, was correct after all when he stated “God save the Queen, the fascist regime.”

A British Holocaust?

The purpose of this blog piece is to highlight the state-sponsored terror that was doled out to the populace during the seemingly eventful decades during which the Tudor family sat on the throne. It is not a mere recital of Foxe’s Book Of Martyrs nor intended as a chronology of Catholic martyrdom. Instead, I feel it necessary to demonstrate just how vengeful and murderous Henry VIII was, whilst also drawing your attention to the misery, pain, torture and worse that was inflicted by Henry’s two daughters upon a whole host of brave souls whose religious convictions were at variance with that of the reigning monarch. Good old Harry of England may have his fan club, but was he far removed from being an early version of Joe Stalin?         

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   [Was Henry VIII a great king or just a sixteenth-century Idi Amin?]

          Anyhow I would quickly like to emphasise that the Tudors did not enjoy the monopoly on inflicting suffering upon their naughty subjects. There was widespread barbarity visited upon the peoples of the British Isles long before and indeed long after the last of the Tudor monarchs exited the stage in 1603. Why is it then that I and many others have always been drawn to the soap opera of the sixteenth century? I would venture to suggest that the callous cruelty that we associate particularly with the reigns of Henry VIII and his daughters Mary and Elizabeth owes itself to the religious upheaval that Martin Luther instigated around 1517 when he unwittingly founded the Protestant Reformation, a fact all the more absurd when one considers that this pioneer was himself a Catholic monk. Ever since Luther’s rebellion against Rome, Europe was plunged into turmoil. What renders the situation a matter of life and death is that the two respective camps had a clear sense of black and white on matters spiritual. Anyone who dared to oppose or reform the old religion was an enemy of Rome and had to be literally extinguished. By the same token, once Protestantism took hold, those who steadfastly clung to the old religion were regarded as equally too dangerous to tolerate. The concepts of compromise and tolerance and mutual respect and understanding were anathema to the religious fanatics and devout worshippers of the sixteenth century. In many respects, the so-called Christians of this epoch were fighting their very own Jihad, but against each other. It is against these unfolding circumstances that the Tudor monarchs were confronted with all manner of heretics and perceived traitors. In such unenlightened times, it was reckoned that the only means of killing an idea was to exterminate every last soul who possessed such an idea or faith. The modern-day perpetrators of genocide still entertain the naive notion that a belief can be killed off by removing everyone who holds that belief. Easier said than done. 
          Before we pour over the list of over seven hundred wretched souls who paid the ultimate price during the tumultuous Tudor years, I would like to enlighten you with the following items of trivia, which you may or may not already be familiar with.
          Firstly, did you know that the lucky victims of a beheading who were spared the prolonged agony of a hung, drawn, and quartered ordeal could potentially remain conscious for several seconds after they had been decapitated? This is a medical fact.
          Secondly, it was customary to pay the executioner in a beheading in order to bribe the axeman to complete his gruesome task to the best of his peculiar talent. However, not all victims received value for money. The dastardly ex-Lord Chancellor Thomas Cromwell and Robert Devereux, the Earl of Essex were two such notable persons whose heads refused to exit the rest of their body at the first attempt, leaving them and others in such circumstances in considerable pain for longer than their wages to the executioner had bargained for.
          Thirdly, the executioner was expected to ask the imminent victim for his or her forgiveness ahead of the fatal blow. It is also worth pointing out that if there was an unenviable queue of ‘offenders’ awaiting their fate on the block, they were dealt with in decreasing ‘order of importance’. The individual of highest rank and noble birth was permitted the extra privilege of being decapitated first. So what? Well, if you consider the five unfortunates who were each falsely accused of being in an adulterous relationship with Queen Anne Boleyn, then you can imagine the amount of blood flowing literally on the block and the scaffold by the time that victim number five, the wretched Mark Smeaton was required to die. Going first and getting the ordeal over with was something to wish for!
          Fourthly, although the victim was usually granted an opportunity for a pre-execution oration atop the scaffold, some offenders deemed it prudent not to condemn their accusers for fear of retribution being meted out against their bereaved families.
          Fifthly, the hung, drawn, and quartered punishment is slightly inaccurately named. Initially, the wretch was drawn by horse through the streets to their place of execution, then he would have been half-hanged, but cruelly kept alive, and then the ritual culminated in a disembowelling, before the corpse would be sliced into four and distributed to vantage points in the vicinity as a reminder of what awaited anyone who contemplated a treasonable act. Therefore, strictly speaking, the punishment was actually drawn, partially hung, and quartered.  
          It is also worth pointing out that the victims who were burnt at the stake were being ‘purged’ of their sinful heresy in order to render them worthy of eternal salvation. This peculiar practice was widespread at the time of the Spanish Inquisition. It became commonplace in England in the 1550s on account of the fact that Queen Mary was effectively a Spanish monarch, given that her mother and her new spouse both hailed from Spain. Anyhow, it was deemed to be infinitely more preferable to burn for a few hours on earth than supposedly to burn forever in Hell. Thus the torture of being fried alive in a town or village square was an act of generosity!
 
 [Mary I (reigned from 1553-1558) was a hate-figure among Protestants!]
          Did you also know that the remarkable Anne Askew [see below] is believed to be the only female who was subjected to the gruesome torture of the rack, an interrogation method which became commonplace decades later for Catholic priests during the Elizabethan era when the threat from Spain heightened a sense of anti-papist hysteria. Every individual listed below has a remarkable story to tell beyond the grave. One person who escaped martyrdom was the exceptionally fortunate Robert Benet, a Mayor of Windsor, who was condemned to be burnt at the stake, but who was peculiarly excused by dint of the fact that he was unwell!
          Also of interest, thinks me, is the fact that some individuals who were transported to the Tower of London by barge along the River Thames would have had to wait the turning of the tide before he or she could proceed with their potentially final journey. Never has the ominous phrase ‘the turning of the tide’ seemed quite so poignant. 
          On the subject of the imposing royal fortress in central London, it ought to be pointed out that for all its horrible dungeons, such as the pit and the infamous tiny cell dubbed ‘Little Ease’, the Tower of London was relatively palatial in contrast to almost any other prison or municipal jail up and down the country, in an age when the notion of prison reform was but a foreign language. Special mention also ought to be assigned to the chief tormentor of Catholics in the last two decades of the sixteenth century, Richard Topcliffe. Old Topcliffe thrived on inflicting torture and even installed a customised rack in his own house for those of a papist inclination. To those who still regard Catholicism as a manifestation of the devil, then Topcliffe is presumably a hero. For the rest of humanity, this gent ranks very highly [or lowly] amongst the most sadistic and barbaric of interrogators.
          Did you also know that one of Anne Boleyn’s favourite Bible stories, derived from the middle of the Old Testament, relates to how Queen Esther saved her people and fellow-believers from extermination at the hands of the evil anti-Semitic Haman? However, Thomas Cromwell managed to postpone the same fate as Haman by striking first against Queen Anne Boleyn in the spring of 1536.
          Furthermore, en route to a trial, the accused would be preceded by an individual who carried an axe facing away from he or she. However, when a guilty verdict was conferred on the accused, he or she would leave the court proceedings with an axe pointed towards them to inform bystanders of the death sentence. Such procedure was reportedly enacted upon the likes of Anne Boleyn and Lady Jane Grey.
          Finally, there are a number of myths about Tudor history which I will briefly address here. In the first instance, Henry VIII may be the founder of the Church of England but he remained staunchly Catholic until his dying day in 1547. Also, although Anne Boleyn is heralded as a champion of the English reformation, she too remained a Catholic until she breathed her last in May 1536. It was indeed Edward VI, the ill-fated male heir of Henry VIII who was England’s first Protestant sovereign. It is also worth noting that King Henry’s sixth and final wife, Catherine Parr actually came perilously close to joining two of her predecessors on the scaffold. An ageing Henry was growing tired of Catherine’s reformist tendencies. Fortunately for Mrs Henry VIII, she was tipped off about the sovereign’s concerns and she had the presence of mind to row back from her theological sermonising. It almost certainly spared her, though she did not long survive her ailing husband. Furthermore, although Mary and her estranged younger sister Elizabeth merit much scorn for their own reigns of terror, they did feel varying degrees of regret and sorrow for approving respectively the executions of Lady Jane Grey and Mary Queen of Scots. 

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[Elizabeth I was equally 'bloody' towards the Catholic clergy]

       Okay, that’s enough bits and pieces of dead bodies for thee. Let us now solemnly browse through the list of high-profile victims of a Tudor tyranny which perhaps collectively cast the shadow of holocaust over the history of Britain. Pedants will correctly point out that a holocaust constitutes a widespread massacre of a large volume of people. Also, a catalogue of over seven hundred executions, spanning a little over a century scarcely merits the word massacre. However, I did insert a question mark in the title, thereby allowing the reader to decide whether there is a case for arguing that the Tudor terror amounts to a holocaust. Nevertheless, it almost goes without saying, but I shall say it anyhow, but these are effectively the ‘celebrity deaths’. The recorded executions below are but the tip of the Tudor iceberg. Indeed, it has been estimated that perhaps as many as seventy-two thousand souls were on the receiving end of capital punishment during the reign of Henry VIII. Maybe the word holocaust is not entirely misplaced after all.
          The litany of victims below paid with their life in almost every instance for either heresy or treason. In fact, one could argue that heretics were traitors and traitors were heretics. In the days of ‘the divine right of Kings’, defying the monarch was tantamount to defying God, while declining to submit to the church of state was equally akin to refusing allegiance to the sovereign. Oh, and if you were given the choice between being hung, drawn, and quartered, or being burnt at the stake, well it is a tad like being between a rock and a hard place. For me, I would opt for the burning, if only because many of the victims were strangled before the flames took hold. Oh such Christian compassion!
          Many more poor souls were executed during the Tudor era. There is simply not enough space to chronicle all such misfortunes. Oh and I would also like to state that irrespective of one’s religious allegiances [or lack of them], there should not be any hierarchy of victims. The list underneath is by no means exhaustive, but perhaps exhausting!
*THE LIST CAN BE FOUND AT THE FOLLOWING SITE: http://gw930.blog.com/the-tudor-tyranny/