A LOCAL authority has defended its decision to give out £765,046 in cash bonuses in one year. 

The figures were unveiled by Freedom of Information requests put into Hampshire County Council by the TaxPayers' Alliance. 

The research found that bonuses were given out 1,092 times in 2022, meaning the average bonus was worth £700.

It is unknown how many staff received a bonus, as some staff may have received multiple.

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This scheme, to "recognise a particular piece of work or a substantial effort above what is expected", comes on top of a voucher scheme previously revealed by the TaxPayers' Alliance, which has cost local taxpayers over £200,000 since 2019.

In addition, it has been revealed that the council gave out £318,277 in redundancy payments to 29 members of staff in 2022. 

Elliot Keck, investigations campaign manager at the TaxPayers' Alliance said: "Local taxpayers will be shocked at these findings. These figures only add to the sense that the council has not got a grip on its spending. The council should urgently review this scheme for the next calendar year."

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However a spokesperson for Hampshire County Council said that the scheme was necessary to retain talent in its 13,000-strong workforce. 

They said: “Our staff deliver a huge number of important local services to Hampshire’s residents, including to growing numbers of the most vulnerable adults and children in Hampshire’s communities.

"We greatly value the efforts of all our dedicated staff. Occasionally, we make special recognition payments to employees for exceptional achievement and high performance in their role – often going above and beyond to support the needs of residents.

"This is one way we seek to retain talented and experienced employees, which also keeps recruitment costs lower.

"These figures cover the activities of the county council, which is the third largest shire council in the country, serving 1.4 million residents, with a gross budget of over £2.4 billion and approximately 13,000 employees.”