Britain10 August, 20263 min read
Northern Ireland Councillors Say Salary Not Attractive, Urge Stormont Communities Minister To Act
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Councillors say Stormont pay rise created significant disparity and deters young candidates. NACNI states current pay arrangements fall short and require minister action.
Northern Ireland councillors
In Northern Ireland, councillors warned that their "salary is not attractive" to encourage younger people into local politics, arguing current arrangements "fall short". The National Association of Councillors in Northern Ireland (NACNI) said in a letter seen by BBC News NI that local councils "will not be as effective" unless allowances and conditions improve, and it asked Stormont's communities minister to act. BBC News NI reported that the Department for Communities said Gordon Lyons was "considering the points raised" by NACNI after a meeting in March.
The BBC said Stormont assembly members (MLAs) received a pay rise of more than £14,000 in April, bringing wages to £67,200 a year, after an almost 27% uplift set by Stormont's Independent Remuneration Board. BBC News NI also said an external independent review recommended a similar 28% rise to almost £22,000 a year, but Stormont ministers rejected it and instead gave councillors a 5% increase to more than £18,000.
Plymouth shadow council pay
In Plymouth, councillors elected to the expanded Plymouth "shadow" authority in 2027 could claim "double pay" for a year even if they have "nothing extra to do," Plymouth Live reported. Plymouth Live said Britain’s Ocean City will swallow a large area of the South Hams into a new Greater Plymouth Council, with a "shadow council" elected next year to "help prepare for the transition" until it takes over in April 2028. The article said Plymouth City Council stated that "In theory, a councillor elected both to an existing council and to the shadow authority could be entitled to receive allowances from both bodies" because they would carry out separate roles in separate legal authorities.
Plymouth Live reported that the Tory party’s Lee Finn said, "We are totally against this," and argued that people are being squeezed by the cost-of-living crisis. The same report said currently city councillors are paid a basic allowance of £13,700, with a special responsibility allowance that can be as high as £27,393 for some senior cabinet members, and council leader Tudor Evans being paid £41,099 on top of the basic allowance.
Debate over allowances
Plymouth Live said the Tory party also argued that councillors elected next year to the "shadow" authority may not have anything to do, saying, "They can’t represent the people, they will have no role or say in policy or impact with regard to power." The report quoted Lee Finn saying, "People are being squeezed by the cost-of-living crisis," and that it was "totally wrong" for those elected to serve their communities to be seen to have their "noses in the trough." Plymouth Live further reported that council allowances during the shadow authority period have not yet been decided, and that details are expected to be set out in the Government's Structural Changes Order (SCO).
A council spokesperson told Plymouth Live, "Until the SCO is published and the shadow authority is formed, it would be premature to speculate on the level of allowances or special responsibility payments that may apply." In Northern Ireland, BBC News NI reported that Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) councillor Trevor Wilson said the independent review of their pay appeared to have been "sidelined," while Sinn Féin councillor Eugene McConnell said the cross-party delegation left the minister in no doubt and that "a further paper was being prepared for submission."