More than £9 million will be spent employing dozens of chief executives of new integrated care boards, each of whom will earn more than the Prime Minister.
Sajid Javid, the Health Secretary, promised on Wednesday he would be “watchful for any waste” of the £12 billion a year tax revenue, but has yet to fully explain how the money will be spent.
On Wednesday night, senior Tories said they were “appalled” by the decision to hire the new executives, saying workers on low salaries would struggle to understand why they were having to pay more tax to fund “mega” pay packets for a legion of new managers.
It came as Mr Johnson faced a grassroots backlash over the tax rise, with Tory activists, donors and former party chairmen all expressing their dismay.
The Prime Minister faced questions about whether his Conservative Party remained committed to low taxes after he raised the tax burden to the highest level in 70 years.
There were reports of Tory members resigning in protest, amid concerns that the party’s traditional support base could become disillusioned with the leadership’s direction.
One Cabinet minister privately said they feared the plans were “the death knell of Conservatism”.
Read more: NHS (No Hope Service) spends millions hiring an army of £200,000 a year bureaucrats
