Agenda item

The Committee was reminded that on 26 February 2014 the Council had approved the 2014/15 Members Allowances Scheme.  The budget position had been established on the basis of a reduction in the number of Special Responsibility Allowances (SRAs) which was not enacted at that time.

Subject to the agreement of the proposed revisions to the Council’s committee structure, the report before the Committee proposed a revision to the existing scheme.  In reviewing the scheme due regard had been given to the June 2014 report of the Independent Remuneration Panel of London Councils and the allowances in the scheme were set with regard to their bands of recommendations.

In addition, close consideration had been given to the diverse political make-up of the Council which was critical when establishing the number of positions that were to receive an SRA.  The Allowances proposed fell within the budget that had been set to ensure allowances were reduced in line with reductions elsewhere within the council.

The Local Authorities (Members’ Allowances) (England) Regulations 2003 provided that a Local Authority should make a scheme in accordance with those Regulations in respect of each year.  Regulation 10 provided that such a scheme should be made before the beginning of each year commencing on 1^st April.  Such a scheme might be amended during the year, but could only be revoked and replaced with a new scheme with effect from the beginning of a year.

Members were reminded that in light of the on-going financial pressures the Council faced with the continued reduction in central government funding, it was proposed that the level of SRAs for a number of posts be reduced, the figures for this were detailed in the table appended to this Minute.

To ensure that expenditure did not exceed the budget position, account had been taken of the circumstance such that when a councillor would otherwise be entitled - under the scheme - to more than one SRA then that entitlement should instead be only to one of them, (being the one attracting the higher rate).  The effect of this was that only 29 of the 33 SRAs proposed in the report would actually be paid to Members.

It was stressed that under Regulation 19 of the 2003 Regulations, before an authority could amend a scheme, it should have regard to the recommendations made in relation to it by an independent remuneration pane – which had been the case in this instance.

This question was discussed at some length with a number of different perspectives being presented for consideration.  One view was that the allowances should simply be reduced across the board by 20%.  Another was that SRAs should be allocated according to the amount of work and the complexity of the work the Chair had to do.

Members of different groups expressed disagreement with the payment of set amounts of SRA to vice-chairmen as it was difficult to calculate how much they actually undertook, but there was more general support for the ad-hoc payment of an attendance allowance in line with that paid to co-optees (£117 a time) in respect of Licensing.  There was also discussion about whether the allowance for the VC of Regulatory Services ought to be considered as well, and whilst some objections were raised about the amount of administration such a scheme might entail, the consensus was that the basic allowances for the vice-chairman of Licensing be removed and replaced with payment per session.

As was pointed out, this was an interim measure and could be revisited later in the year and re-evaluated ahead of next April and, where possible, enhanced.

The issue of whether to accept the recommendations – including the amendment to remove the annual allowance for the vice-chair of Licensing and replacing it with a “per meeting” payment at the same rate of that paid to Independent Persons – and recommend this to Council, was put to the vote.

In favour of the motion: Councillors: Michael White, Roger Ramsey, Melvin Wallace, Osman Dervish, Joshua Chapman, Jody Ganly, Clarence Barrett, Darren Wise, Lawrence Webb and Philip Hyde

Against the motion: Councillors: Ray Morgon and David Durant

Councillor Matthews abstained

The motion was CARRIED by ten votes to two.

The Committee RESOLVED to recommend to Council that:

1.            The proposed revision to the Members’ Allowances Scheme for the remainder of the 2014/15 municipal year as set out in Schedule 1 of Appendix A (as amended) be approved.  This amendment – concerning the Vice Chairman of the Licensing Committee – removes the proposed £2,000 allowance and replaces it with a standard rate of allowance per each sub-committee meeting chaired equal to that paid to co-optees (currently £117).