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NHS boss received nearly £400,000 'redundancy' pay-off when she retired

Andrew PickenBBC Scotland
NHS NSS A woman in a blue top and grey hair looks at the camera. Behind her is a tall loose stone fireplace and a large black piano. NHS NSS
Mary Morgan was handed a £378,000 payment "under contractual redundancy terms" when she retired from a senior role in Scotland's NHS earlier this year

An NHS executive has received a near £400,000 redundancy pay-off after retiring from a health board, new figures show.

Following a 44-year career in the health service, Mary Morgan retired as chief executive of NHS National Services Scotland (NSS) in May.

But it has now been revealed Morgan received a £378,000 payment "under contractual redundancy terms" as part of an exit that came after NHS NSS was merged into a new quango called Public Services Delivery (PSD) Scotland in April.

A PSD Scotland spokesperson said Morgan retired after an "exceptional career" and all payments were in accordance with the terms and conditions of her employment.

The payment comes ahead of a planned major overhaul of Scotland's NHS which could see the number of health boards cut dramatically.

PSD Scotland started operating in in April and was set up to drive changes across the health and care system, and the wider public sector.

It replaced both NHS NSS and another quango called NHS Education for Scotland, whose chief executive Prof Karen Reid is now in charge of PSD Scotland.

Morgan, who earned between £160,000 and £165,000 a year, had been chief executive of NHS NSS since 2021.

BBC Scotland asked NHS NSS on 10 March what would happen with Morgan now her role was defunct.

The health board said the senior NHS executive was "considering her options and next opportunity in line with national workforce policies".

After a follow-up query three weeks later, Keith Redpath, the then chairman of NHS NSS, replied: "Mary Morgan retires on 3 May, concluding an exceptional 44-year career in NHS Scotland."

The NHS NSS accounts for 2025/26 show Morgan retired under contractual redundancy terms from PSD Scotland on 3 May and received a related amount of £378,000.

The same accounts show Morgan's pension pot, known as The Cash Equivalent Transfer Value, is just over £2m.

A PSD Scotland spokesperson said: "Mary Morgan retired on 3 May, concluding an exceptional 44-year career in NHS Scotland. All payment received was in accordance to the terms and conditions of her employment."

The BBC has approached Morgan, but she declined to comment.