Councillors vote for their own pay rise
Jul 27 2009 by Neil McKay, The Journal
Neil McKay
(0191) 201-6007
neil.mckay@ncjmedia.co.uk
COUNCILLORS in the North’s largest local authority have come under fire over a decision to award themselves a 20% pay rise – and claim they were actually saving the taxpayer money by doing so.
An independent panel set up to look at the pay of Durham County Council’s 126 members will next week recommend increasing their basic allowance from £11,079 to £13,300.
In April, the council, the region’s biggest local authority, became a unitary authority, responsible for all services in the county. It spends £1.2bn a year. The panel says all councillors should have a basic allowance of £13,000 – a 20% increase on the current figure of £11,079.
Other proposals would see the special responsibility payment for leader Simon Henig rise 21% from £30,136 to £36,575 while that for deputy leader Alan Napier is set to go up by nearly 8%, from £18,508 to £19,950.
Taxpayers’ Alliance campaign manager Susie Squire said: “It’s totally unacceptable for councillors to be voting themselves such a massive increase in their allowances, particularly at a time when taxpayers who pay the bills are struggling to make ends meet.
“They should remember that their’s is ultimately a position of public service, not personal enrichment.
“Further, it is very concerning that the council are not willing to justify their increase, or why they have back-dated it.”
A spokeswoman for the council claimed it was actually saving the taxpayer money as it had proposed in its bid for unitary status a basic allowance for all councillors of £20,000.
“By not pursuing the original submission for allowances, savings of more than £1m will be made by Durham County Council if the panel’s recommendations are accepted,” she said.
She added: “In reaching this decision, the panel gathered evidence from a range of councils, from meetings with elected members and reviewing the expected range of responsibilities for members.”
The panel felt strongly that it would be difficult to ignore the wider economic climate and general heightened awareness of allowances paid to those holding public office but recognised the responsibility and roles undertaken by members of the new council.
“The new allowances were considered against other comparable authorities which identified a range of allowances up to £15,816 per annum.”
It’s unacceptable for councillors to be voting themselves such a massive increase
