A new survey showing huge pay gaps between UK bosses and their staff has found that thecountry’stop 350 company execs are being paid on average 53 times more than their mid-level counterparts.
A poll for the High Pay Centre shared exclusively with The Guardian found that huge salary gaps have become commonplace in large UK businesses and that the majority of Brits did not approve.
It comes as many up and down the country are facing the choice between heating and eating, as energy bills skyrocket and the value of UK pension and out-of-work benefits see the biggest fall in 50 years.
According to the new survey, 63% of workers believe that CEOs shouldn’t be earning more than 10 times that of their staff, and only 3% of people deem it acceptable for them to be paid over 50 times the company’s average wage.
Image: Mutual Interest Media
In reality, research published by the same think tank in 2020 shows many top-level bosses are already being paid 50 times more – with some earning as much as 100 times their company’s median salary.
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High Pay Research conducted two years ago found a total of 43 bosses of FTSE 350 companies received more than 100 times as much as the average employee, whilst on average bosses are paid at least 53 times more.
It also found that on average an FTSE 100 chief executive makes more money in four days than an average UK worker will over the course of a year.
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Many respondents felt that policy measures aimed at distributing wealth more evenly could help to raise living standards for people across the UK.
Luke Hildyard, the director of the High Pay Centre, told The Guardian that the research revealed: “the extent to which the lives of those at the top and those of everybody else have become so far removed from each other”.
He added: “That’s probably not a healthy development.
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Image: PixaHive
“Britain’s biggest employers dedicate a significant amount of their budget to the pay of a small number of top earners.
“Redirecting some of this money to low- and middle-income workers would be a good way to raise living standards and address the cost of living crisis but it will require policymakers and business leaders to be a bit more open-minded about whether those at the top really need to be paid so much.”
Frances O’Grady, the general secretary of the TUC, added: “The whole workforce deserves to share in the success of a firm, not just those in the boardroom. But over the years executive pay has raced ahead of other workers – and now it’s at stratospheric levels.
“It’s time to set a maximum ratio between the top earner in each firm and other workers. There should be workers on remuneration committees, to ground decisions in the interests of the whole workforce.
Appeal launched to find the owner of live chickens found at Creamfields festival
Daisy Jackson
The hunt is on to find the owner of a pair of chickens who were discovered at Creamfields festival.
The two birds were spotted on the grounds of the huge electronic music festival by bewildered festival-goers.
The cockerel and hen were trapped in a hedge, after it appears they wandered onto the festival campsite before the security barriers were installed.
The birds then found themselves trapped inside as around 70,000 music fans poured into Cheshire for a line-up that included Calvin Harris, Swedish House Mafia, Disclosure, and Tiësto.
The chickens have been safely rescued from the Creamfields festival site and are recovering at a wildlife centre, and now the RSPCA is on a mission to find their owner.
Festival-goers first called the RSPCA on Saturday 29 August to alert them to the cockerel and hen trapped inside the festival, one of whom assisted in the rescue mission.
RSPCA Inspector Leanne Cooper: “I was surprised that they were inside the festival site and I needed to get through the road blocks and security before reaching them on foot through muddy fields. I met the caller who helped me as they were just running up and down the hedge line where there was a wire fence blocking access.
Where the chickens were discovered at CreamfieldsThe RSPCA wants to track their owners down
“We managed to guide them out and I caught both of them with my rescue net which was a bit of a sight for the festival campers.
“I don’t think they were abandoned and they’re more likely to be stray because it’s farmland all around the festival site. They don’t have any health issues, apart from being quite underweight.
“With the fences going up a week before the festival starts they’d probably been unable to get out for some time and had been left foraging in the hedge. Someone mentioned that a third bird was also trapped, although we couldn’t find any others.
“I am really grateful to the festival-goer who found them and alerted us to their plight.”
Manchester Airport issues update for anyone flying today after hundreds of cancellations yesterday
Emily Sergeant
Manchester Airport has issued an update for anyone catching a flight today after hundreds of cancellations yesterday.
In case you hadn’t heard, hundreds of flights at several major UK airports – including Manchester Airport – were disrupted by a technical fault at air traffic control provider National Air Traffic Services (NATS) yesterday (8 September 2026), with the incident grounding planes and resulting in numerous cancellations.
According to Flightradar24, more than 1,000 flights were cancelled nationwide, and many passengers were told to expect disruption for the rest of the day.
One of the worst-affected airlines was said to be Ryanair, with around 65,000 passengers affected by the cancellations and delays.
Manchester Airport issued its first statement addressing the matter at 3:15pm yesterday, stating: “We are aware of an issue affecting NATS’ air traffic control service at UK airports, which may result in delays to some departing flights from Manchester Airport today.
“Passengers due to travel are advised to check the latest status of their flight with their airline. We will continue to monitor the situation and share further updates as more information becomes available.”
Now, although the issue has been resolved, Manchester Airport has issued further statements informing anyone travelling today what they can expect.
The airport started off by saying that it is ‘operating as normal’ today, but that passengers are advised to ‘check with their airline for the latest information’.
Georgina Pellant -
3rd May 2022 
