
The email came about after Chris Moss of Blackwood got in touch with Mr Morgan to complain about the settlement.
In response, written two days after the settlement was agreed, the council leader said: “This has been a long-standing issue that has had to be navigated carefully, as there is a requirement for us to follow a Welsh government policy in this area which we have no control over, but covers how these matters are dealt with in connection with senior officers.”
Morgan said the amounts quoted in the press did not reflect the amounts received by the former chief executive “as they also include… costs regarding national insurance and pensions that the council has to legally pay out”.
“A significant proportion of the payment relates to statutory payments that the council would have to pay regardless of how, or why, the chief executive left the organisation,” he added.
“Whilst these matters were contained in the report, the various media outlets have chosen not to reference this.”
The report was understood to have been seen by councillors at the meeting where the settlement was agreed last week, but it has not been published by the council or formally shared with the press.
Morgan added that he did not believe the council had anything to fear from going to a tribunal, but “given the timescales involved and the cost of us following this process, I hope you can see that a settlement is the best outcome for residents”.
He said: “I understand that this will be difficult for some people to comprehend, but the settlement negotiated was the lowest cost option for the council, and has concluded this matter once and for all, which is so much more preferable, and cost effective, than dragging on for several more months.”
His email referred to the Local Authorities (Standing Orders) (Wales) Regulations 2006, external, which concerns disciplinary procedures for chief executives and other senior council officials.
It says that no action can be taken without the appointment of a designated independent person.
The email does not detail amounts but BBC Wales understands that an alternative process to the settlement was thought to cost more than £500,000.
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