THE combined salaries of six senior council officials topped half-a-million-pounds last year, latest figures have revealed.

According to North Ayrshire Council's draft annual accounts for 2011/12 six of the top earners took home a collective sum of more than �500,000.

The highest earner of the lot was, of course, NAC's chief executive Elma Murray whose pay packet was a staggering �126,597.

Astonishingly, that figure was further topped up by a payment of �11,150 in relation to her duties as North Ayrshire's electoral returning officer.

Full story and comment in the Largs & Millport Weekly News of July 25.