Melton councillors vote for allowance raises after heated debate

The rise was made because of the extra responsibility taken on by the five senior councillors who make up the cabinet and who take key decisions on council policy.

Some of them argued at Thursday’s annual meeting of the authority that their roles felt almost like doing full-time jobs which involved working evenings and weekends as well as opening them up to greater scrutiny from colleagues and the public.

The council approved an increase in Special Responsiblity Allowances (SRA) for each cabinet member which involves a total outlay of almost £25,000 as it includes a back-dated rise to the start of the financial year in 2019.

But there was intense opposition to the increases from several councillors who were unhappy the money was being paid at a time when the local economy was in free fall due to the impact of the Covid-19 crisis and when many faced losing their business or their job.

Councillor Chris Evans, the newly-elected leader of the Independent Greens opposition group on the council, failed with a motion to take out the proposed cabinet rises when it was defeated by 18 votes to eight with two abstentions.

He told the meeting, which was broadcast online because of social distancing restrictions, that he couldn’t ‘stomach voting for this remuneration’ and added: “We are in an economic situation not seen in this country since the Second World War.

“People are dying by the day because of this coronavirus and I am appalled we are doing this now.”

“It represents significant increases with no justification for it at all.”

His thoughts were echoed by Councillor Elaine Holmes, who told colleagues: “I’m just really sad.

“We have people watching this online and I really don’t know what they will think of this decision.

“This is the most retrograde step this council has made for a long time.

Councillor Donald Pritchett branded the timing of the allowance increases as ‘insensitive’ and former leader, Councillor Pam Posnett, said: “I have got two grandchildren who don’t know if they will have jobs to go back to and I can’t support this at this moment in time.

“We should review the situation in six months.”

The raises were suggested by an independent review carried out by Independent Welland Remuneration Panel, chaired by John Cade, of the University of Birmingham.

They suggested the leader, Councillor Joe Orson, should receive an annual payment based on three times the basic £4,900 allowance given to borough councillors.

This sees his SRA go up £1,664 to £14,700, plus a backdated additional payment of £1,460.

Fellow cabinet members Alan Pearson (housing and communities), Ronnie de Burle (finance and resources) and Alison Freer-Jones (enviroment and regulatory) each receive a £1,959 increase to £6,125 per year and a backdated payment of £1,710 for the last financial year.

Deputy leader, Councillor Leigh Higgins, who is cabinet member for growth and prosperity, gets a more modest allowance raise of £736 to £9,800 per annum, plus a backdated £640.

There is now one fewer member of the cabinet, which was introduced as the system of governance last year, so some of them have taken on extra responsibilities.

Councillor Higgins told the meeting: “I agree with what members have said about the timing of this.

“But the leader has reduced the cabinet by one member to offset this rise and my portfolio has increased.

“There are other savings as well, such as reducing the mileage rate from 65p to 45p.”

The leader, Councillor Orson, told the meeting: “I take note of what Councillor Evans said but it never seems to be the right time for discussions like this.

“This is all about recognising the changes we’ve made in the council with cabinet members doing more than committee chairs have done.

“We are open to more scrutiny and accountability.

“We paid money for this review and we should take note of the findings.”

Another cabinet member whose portfolio has widened this year, Councillor Freer-Jones, said: “As someone who already has a full-time job, and an exhausting full-time job, we should consider the extra responsibilities cabinet members have.

“I respect opinions that this is the wrong time but the AGM is when the AGM is and this is the time of year we always consider reviews like this.

“I don’t agree that it is an insensitive time.

“I work full-time and then I work evenings and Saturdays and Sundays on council work.

“We have a lot of responsibilities as councillors but there is even greater responsibility with the work we take on as cabinet members.”

There was support for the rises from non-cabinet members, including Councillor Pat Cumbers, who told the meeting: “I know how hard cabinet members work and I don’t doubt that when we get into the economic recovery we will all be working harder than we’ve ever done.

“Some cabinet members regard it as a full time job and they don’t get paid much for doing it.

“I do not think this money is unearned and in the future it will be earned well.”

The increases were voted for by 17 councillors with seven against and four abstentions, including current Mayor, Councillor Malise Graham.