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Council cash discussed in secret
2:17pm Thursday 18th September 2008
Comments (18)Town councillors in Chippenham decided at a meeting last night to ban press and members of the public from their discussions about an increase in their allowances.
During the hour long Strategy and Resources Committee meeting councillors voted to put the discussion about their allowances into confidential minutes.
Town and district councillor Andy Phillips tried to have the decision overturned but to no avail.
He said: "We have nothing to hide and the public should be made aware of what we are doing at these meetings.
"It should be an open and honest discussion."
Coun Phillip's motion gained no support from anyone else at the meeting and the discussion was held in private.
The discussion related to a report compiled by the Independent Remuneration Panel in August which recommended that Chippenham town councillors' allowance could increase from £500 per annum to £1,342.
If the town council accepted this recommendation the overall cost would be a maximum of £29,524.
Your Say YourThe Wiltshire Gazette and Herald
Gobbledegook, London says...
2:43pm Thu 18 Sep 08
The Maxter, Chippenham says...
2:46pm Thu 18 Sep 08
Public sector retirement at 60.
Final Salary pensions.
None of which are available in the private sector. yet when it comes to wages, they want private sector parity.
mrp, the nam says...
2:54pm Thu 18 Sep 08
Don, Devizes says...
3:12pm Thu 18 Sep 08
The Maxter wrote:There are final salary pensions in the private sector. Not that many, I grant you, and fewwe still open to new entrants but there are still a few.
People in public service should have any discussion about allowances in the public domain. There is no transparency in the actions of our councillors, and we must challenge this. Along with; Public sector retirement at 60. Final Salary pensions. None of which are available in the private sector. yet when it comes to wages, they want private sector parity.
John, Chippenham says...
6:35pm Thu 18 Sep 08
mjhudston, Chippenham, Wiltshire says...
7:00pm Thu 18 Sep 08
ban-aspartame, Chippenham says...
7:08pm Thu 18 Sep 08
John, Chippenham says...
7:41pm Thu 18 Sep 08
The Maxter, Chippenham says...
8:25pm Thu 18 Sep 08
There are final salary pensions in the private sector. Not that many- Don of course you are correct, perhaps what I should have said, are being phased out across industry (including the Armed Forces) due to the cost of funding them - not an issue in local government, where they are funded by the council taxpayer!
The Maxter, Chippenham says...
8:42pm Thu 18 Sep 08
These can be, 1)taken at 60
2)are index linked
3)are based on the final salary of the worker.
Imagine with the current climate, the hole that requires filling to service the above criteria! Spending on pensions in 2007-08 alone rose by 13%! Contributing approx 2% of the council tax increase.
John, Chippenham says...
8:00am Fri 19 Sep 08
The Maxter wrote:Yes but this increase that they're on about is an allowance for their expenses, councillor don't get a pension from the council as they are voted in officials. This is purely to cover things like mileage allowance to attend town council meetings etc, which a lot of them will make the most of seeing as the don't even live in the town.
Searching 'thisismoney' reveals that on average 25% of your council tax is used to service the pension requirements of local public sector. These can be, 1)taken at 60 2)are index linked 3)are based on the final salary of the worker. Imagine with the current climate, the hole that requires filling to service the above criteria! Spending on pensions in 2007-08 alone rose by 13%! Contributing approx 2% of the council tax increase.
Don, Devizes says...
9:23am Fri 19 Sep 08
In my experience, a good 60%+ of Town Councillors are dedicated and hard-working so the people of Chippenham are getting good value from them.
But have you seen the allowances for District and County Councillors. Basic of about six grand, I beleive. And there's a proportion of them who do absolutely nothing whatsoever to justify this.
John, Chippenham says...
12:34pm Fri 19 Sep 08
Don wrote:Don't know about county but district councillors get £3,500 a tear, but as most are on the town council as well they get a second bite of the cherry, just pure greed.
The average Town Councilor should give about 500 hours a year to the 'job', I would say. If they went for the maximum, they'd still be under minimum wage. In my experience, a good 60%+ of Town Councillors are dedicated and hard-working so the people of Chippenham are getting good value from them. But have you seen the allowances for District and County Councillors. Basic of about six grand, I beleive. And there's a proportion of them who do absolutely nothing whatsoever to justify this.
Don, Devizes says...
1:31pm Fri 19 Sep 08
A fair few of those will be standing again for the Unitary Authority which will involve more work but which will eb rewarded with higher allowances. When the elections come, we all need to check the attendance figures for candidates who are already in office. Some are shamful. Many work very hard for us but a few others just leech.
mjhudston, Chippenham, Wiltshire says...
2:11pm Fri 19 Sep 08
The GAH really need to stop and think before publishing only half the facts. I will take scott mcphearsons reports with more than a pinch of salt in the future.
While it was a private email between myself and my councillor I feel that due to the GAH sensationally poor reporting that the record be put straight.
Dear Mr. Hudston,
Thank you for your email,
Fortunately I was present at the meeting you mention, so have no need to access the link.
It is normal practice to exclude Press and Public when debating Agenda Items relating to these matters. Particularly,when discussions taking place could identify an individual or individuals who for good reasons are entitled not to have details of their personal circumstances in the public domain. The reason for this particular item being discussed in private related to a report prepared by an independent remuneration panel, that recommended Councillor Allowances be more than TWICE the amount previously agreed by Council.
The result of the debate was that the Committee voted to stand by their previous decision and accept an annual allowance of £500 per Councillor, per annum.
This decision will be made public and we certainly have nothing to hide.
I have represented this area on the Town Council for nine years, and while I am proud to do so and enjoy interaction with the people who voted for me, and with those who didnt! I have borne all expenses out of my own pocket. Part of our debate centred around attracting fresh Candidates to stand for election and we have to recognise that some very good people are deterred from putting themselves forward due to childcare costs or elderly relative care for instance. The cost of attending meetings is another factor, as a self employed person, I have lost business over the years.
In the future, as Wiltshire becomes a Unitary Authority, a Town councillors role will be even more demanding and Agendas and minutes will be sent electronically. So, printing costs will have to be taken into account.
I do hope this has helped to clarify matters for you.
I think Chippenham gets good value out of its Council, and I am disappointed with this style of sensational reporting by our press. The reasons were explained to the reporter, He chose to ignore them.
Yours Sincerely
Cllr. Desna Allen
old jarge, wiltshire says...
6:54am Mon 22 Sep 08
Don, Devizes says...
12:24pm Tue 23 Sep 08
old jarge wrote:Met them all, have you?
Now you can call me a suspishus old bugger, but I reckon the last person who were a councillor truly to help the community and not his own interests were old John Marty in Melksham, and he went to his maker back in the 70's. Tis funny how so many of 'em have businesses to protect.
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moonraker1, chippenham says...
2:35pm Thu 18 Sep 08