THE article 'Top council job advertised at £100,000' (October 6) shows there is too big a divide between the low and highly paid in our society.

The street cleaners of York are more important to public health than the chief executive.

The library staff are more useful and the parks and garden staff give us better value for money.

By paying too much for one, it makes many others feel underpaid and is socially unjust.

The adult minimum wage could be the basis of all public service pay with top pay being limited to ten times the minimum wage.

Based on £3.70 an hour and a 37.5 hour week, the top pay would be £72,150 a year.

The Prime Minister should be paid the most, suggested £72,150 a year, with other such as York's chief executive receiving a proportion, making their pay about £50,000 a year.

A new tax incentive to limit fat cat pay could be used in industry to similar effect.

The overall benefits of spreading payments more evenly would mean the lower paid could afford to buy more new items, thus generating more business, minimising poverty and the paperwork of various claimants.

In short this would create a better society.

Colin Clarke,

The Crescent,

Stamford Bridge, York.

...I HAVE just read your report about City of York Council being prepared to pay its new chief executive £100,000.

It is hard to see how the council can justify such an expenditure when budgets for essential services are constantly being cut and staff, who deliver frontline services, are kept on some of the lowest salaries in the country.

It is difficult to understand how the council can justify a wage for a job that would be considered competitive in London when it would not offer London salaries for key frontline staff such as housing benefit assessors or care workers.

I am sure the people of York would like the best person for the job, but a pensioner waiting months for their housing benefit would undoubtedly want the best person working on their benefit claim.

Name and address supplied.