David Miliband has been paid over £1million by a humanitarian aid charity which is heavily funded by British taxpayers.
In 2022, Miliband, who previously served as Labour’s Foreign Secretary, received six times more than Sir Keir Starmer’s current salary when he served as the president and chief executive - a role which he has held since 2013.
The International Rescue Committee (IRC), a US-based organisation, was given over £30m last year by the Government to run refugee, health and poverty-relief projects in Africa, Asia and the Middle East.
According to the latest data given to US tax authorities, alongside his $1,253,728 (£983,073) pay package, Miliband also received a $150,000 (£117,701.25) bonus.
David Miliband has been paid over £1million by the International Rescue Committee (IRC)GettyIRC staff had previously been warned about the need for “rigorous prioritisation of spending” after the organisation reported a $50m (£3,923,375) deficit this year.
MPs have slammed the news regarding Miliband’s salary. Shadow security minister Tom Tugendhat said: “The IRC is meant to be there for people suffering from the impact of humanitarian crises, not enriching its boss. This is why successive UK governments have supported its work with millions from the aid budget.”
He added that Miliband’s “outrageously large wage” was “shocking” in light of the charity’s financial hardships.
“It needs to re-evaluate its choices and prioritise helping those in need rather than lining the pockets of its CEO,” he concluded.
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Miliband’s pay increased by $111,314 (£87,370) from the year prior
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A staff member at the IRC - which the physicist Albert Einstein helped found in 1933 to support refugees fleeing Nazi Germany – told the Mail on Sunday that it was “demoralising” to be led by someone earning a “millionaire's salary”.
“This disparity is troubling as the organisation faces significant financial challenges and staff are at imminent risk of losing their jobs,” said the source.
Miliband’s pay increased by $111,314 (£87,370) from the year prior. He has been given bonuses worth $400,000 (£313,884) over three successive tax filings.
His predecessor, a theologian who left in 2013, earned $380,000 (£298,189) a year.
Documents seen by the publication show that the IRC – faced a whopping deficit this year due to fund-raising shortfalls and cost overruns, in spite of a $16.5m (£12,798,307) bequest.
The organisation is expecting significant lay-offs will be required to balance their budget.
Tom Tugendhat slammed Miliband’s 'outrageously large wage'
PAA source close to the IRC said that their legal and human resource teams are “figuring out all the legalities across countries” before they begin handing out notices to staff.
In October, Miliband sent a letter to staff warning them of their operating deficit, which they would try to rectify a “rigorous prioritisation of spending”. And in an update in March, he warned his leadership team that there was a “larger deficit than anticipated”.
A charity spokesman said Miliband's salary was set by the US board of directors' compensation committee. They also stressed that he, along with other senior officials, had accepted a pay cut this year due to the deficit.
“Like every organisation in the humanitarian sector, we face rising costs, not just in our international programmes but also in the US where refugees face high and rising rents. We are determined not to compromise on the quality or scale of our programmes, and so continue to develop a deficit reduction plan that protects both.”
The spokesman added that since Miliband took over as leader, the charity had grown “from a $450m organisation to over $1.481billion, reaching more people than ever”.