The Westmorland and Furness Council leadership are set to receive a substantial increase in allowances with the increase to be recommended for approval by the council on Thursday at a meeting in Kendal.
The meeting taking place at County Hall in Kendal will see a report presented to councillor recommending the councils cabinet and leadership receive a collective allowance of £275,000 over the next 12 months plus expenses.
The cabinet of Westmorland and Furness Council is made up of ten councillors including the Leder and Deputy Leader of the council and eight portfolio holders.
The recommendations councillors will be asked to approve will see each cabinet member receive £26,000 per year with the leader receiving £39,000 and deputy leader receiving £28,600.
The individual members of the council cabinet are:
Cllr Jonathan Brook - Leader of Council £39,000
Cllr Patricia Bell - Deputy Leader of Council 28,600
Cllr Giles Archibald £26,000
Cllr Judith Derbyshire £26,000
Cllr Neil Hughes £26,000
Cllr Andrew Jarvis £26,000
Cllr Dyan Jones £26,000
Cllr Sue Sanderson £26,000
Cllr Virginia Taylor £26,000
Cllr Peter Thornton £26,000
During a review of the allowances some councillors raised concerns at the lack of provision for pensions in the Members Allowances Scheme. With Cabinet Members estimated that they spent an average of between 26-28 hours a week on cabinet business.
Westmorland and Furness Council currently has a total approved annual budget for Members Allowances in 2023-2024 of £1.072m.
The council will also be recommended to approve an index lined increase in member allowances for all 65 councillors currently this is £13,000 per year and equated to an annual increase of 3.88%.
If the recommendation to index link Members Allowances be approved by the Council an additional amount will be required for the already £1.072million councillors allowances budget.
The same meeting will see the council be recommended to approve its budget for the next twelve months and set a council tax increase for residents across the Westmorland and Furness council district.
The recommendations have already received public condemnation and calls for residents to consider attending the council meeting at Kendal Town Hall on Thursday the 22nd of February at 10am to object to the increase in allowances.
Cllr Jonathan Davies Leader of local political party Putting Cumbria First in a statement issued on Wednesday Evening when the council published its proposals said “The amounts are an affront to the people who live and work in the district served by Westmorland and Furness council.”
“At a time, many face a cost-of-living crisis members of Westmorland and Furness council will be asked to substantially increase the allowance of the council leadership while also increasing the council tax and approve a budget to make savings.”
“The council’s budget proposal includes saving that will see direct cuts to funding to local communities, yet the pockets of the council leadership will be filled further from the coffers of the public purse.”
“The very idea of this is deplorable at this time and this council should be ashamed that this proposal even graces the agenda papers of Westmorland and Furness council today.”
“To add insult to the whole process the council is now refusing to let any members of the public speak or make representation at the council meeting silencing the voice of the public as the leadership fills their pockets further”.
Westmorland and Furness Council have confirmed that no members of the public will be allowed to speak or make representation at the council meeting on Thursday die to the meeting been the council’s budget setting meeting.
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