Local democracy – it’s time to stop the gravy train

20 August 2012

Local democracy – it’s time to stop the gravy train

 

It’s time for some belt-tightening at the town hall.

That’s the view of St Helens Green Party following its analysis of local councillors’ allowances.  

St Helens Metropolitan Borough Council has 48 local councillors: three for each of the borough’s 16 wards. In the financial year 2011/12, total allowances claimed by them exceeded £550,000.

The council leader received £40,000, the deputy leader £25,000 and their six cabinet colleagues more than £22,000 each.

A compulsory 10% levy on individual Labour Party councillors’ allowances meant that the Labour Party itself indirectly received more than £50,000 from local council tax payers. 

Francis Williams of St Helens Green Party says:

“We have a bloated expenses and allowances system that allows individuals, families, political parties and their career politicians to profit at the expense of the rest of us.

“Undoubtedly there are some capable councillors, but the status quo cannot continue. It’s time to stop the gravy train.”

The most senior politicians in St Helens collectively receive allowances approaching £200,000 a year.

St Helens Council also has a chief executive, Carole Hudson, whose own salary also approaches £200,000 per year and St Helens Green Party understands that the total cost of senior management on the officer side exceeds £½million.

Francis Williams adds:

“The cost of senior management at St Helens Council – politicians and officers combined – is heading towards £1million per year. When council staff and the rest of us are tightening our own belts, we have to ask ‘is this value for money?’ and ‘could the money be better spent elsewhere?’”

St Helens Green Party proposes:

• a review of senior management costs at St Helens Council, including political management costs;
• a review of the council’s three councillors per ward policy;
• the publication on the council’s website of the TOTAL income councillors receive from ALL public bodies and quangos; and
• a review of the current election cycle, which sees borough-wide local elections in three out of every four years at an estimated cost of £100,000 per year.  

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