Whitehall elite bag £400,000 in bonuses – despite working from home

A PELOTON-riding civil servant was given a bonus of almost £20,000 last year, while mainly working from home.

Sarah Healey, permanent secretary at the culture department, was one of several top officials trousering a total of more than £400,000 in the pandemic.

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The mum of three was blasted by MPs last year after she boasted about how much she loved homeworking.

She said it allowed her to get on her Peloton exercise bike during the day because she no longer had to spend so much time commuting.

Whitehall documents show she got an extra £15,000 to £20,000 in “non- consolidated pay” on top of her £170,000 salary.

Others to get big bonuses included Britain’s most senior civil servant Sir Mark Sedwill.

He also got £15,000 to £20,000 in addition to his £215,000 salary as Cabinet Secretary and head of the Home Civil Service.

Tory MP Philip Davies called the payments “completely in­appropriate” especially when so many had to survive on pay cuts because of furlough.

The Government said: “It is right that staff are rewarded for hard work when they demonstrate high-level performance.

“We acknowledge that pay awards in the public sector must be justified, so it is right that we publish this information and allow it to be scrutinised.”