A NEW public health director for Oxfordshire will be chosen by county councillors at a meeting next week.

Jonathan McWilliam, the council’s former public health director, left in January and was one of its top-earning officials.

A cross-party group of councillors will decide Dr McWilliam’s successor at a meeting on Thursday evening at County Hall in Oxford.

No details of who might be in the running for the post can be disclosed ahead of the meeting.

Dr McWilliam’s successor will be paid between £113,460 and £118,685 with an on-call allowance.

Their salary will be significantly less than that of Yvonne Rees, the county council’s chief executive and head of paid service. However, Ms Rees is also chief executive of Cherwell District Council and the two authorities pay her salary.

All eight of the county council's chief officers are paid over £113,000 and the highest earning officers in the authority collect £144,228 a year.

They are the council’s interim strategic director for resources, Nick Graham, and its strategic director for communities, Bev Hindle. Mr Hindle will shortly move into another role working for the Oxfordshire Growth Board.

The council’s median annual salary was £29,055 a year at the start of this year.