Councillors' expenses cost you £350,000

COUNCILLORS representing Macclesfield last year claimed more than £350,000 in allowances and expenses with one Prestbury representative netting more than £50,000.

Elected members of Macclesfield Borough Council representing Maxonians within the boundaries of this paper received more than £200,000, figures for 2007-8 show.

And those representing the borough within Cheshire County Council between them claimed £153,000. And the figures confirm Prestbury County Councillor Paul Findlow received £50,652 due to his position as leader of the council.

In both the county and borough the figures involve expenses for travel, accommodation and meals, as well as basic and special responsibility allowances (effectively salaries).

The figures were similar to previous years, with the majority of tax-payers’ money spent on the extra responsibilities and standard allowances.

Borough Council

Borough councillors each received £3,506 for their basic duties, with an extra £282 to each for their telephone line.

In addition, a number claimed for car mileage and often received extra responsibility payments for duties such as being a cabinet member or chairing a committee.

The highest amount was claimed by last year’s mayor, Councillor Barry Burkhill, who received £17,936, including £7,908 untaxed and £5,272 taxed for his mayoral role.

Leader of the Council Wesley Fitzgerald claimed the second highest amount at £15,889. This included £10,739 for being cabinet leader and £1,218 on mileage.

He said: "It is good value that the public are getting. The last year has been very special with regard to the setting up of Cheshire East and I had a lot of to-ing and fro-ing to do on that matter. When you consider the business we are doing and how it affects peoples’ lives, I believe the allowances for members are incredibly low."

Councillor Richard Watson claimed £6,133 last year, more than a third of which was for leading the Labour group. He believes the system is transparent enough but has reservations about travel allowances.

"I have only claimed on two or three occasions in the last six years and don’t normally claim for small amounts," he said. "But I don’t have many complaints about the current system."

Coun Adrian Bradley, who is both a borough and county councillor, claimed £9,640 for the former role, including £5,369 as leader of the Lib Dem opposition group, and £18,488 in the latter, half of which was his basic allowance and £5,633 for special responsibilities.

He called the current system "fair and adequate".

"So many members of the public assume all councillors are on the make and I take that as an insult. No one should be expected to be a councillor for nothing but no one should expect to do it simply for the money."

County council

County councillors each received a basic allowance of £9,274, with the vast majority qualifying for one or more special responsibility payment, as well as the chance to make subsistence and travel expense claims.

The highest individual claim was from Paul Findlow, leader of Cheshire County Council, who took £50,652.

His special responsibilities as leader (£22,000), executive member for policy and resources (£10,800) and vice-chairman of a staffing special committee (£2,300) accounted for £35,190 of that. He also claimed £5,593 in travel expenses and £594 in subsistence (meals).

Coun Findlow said: "(The system) is exclusively a matter for the independent statutory panel – they determine in recommendations and reports the amount to be paid.

"I live in the far east of the county and Chester is in the far west and I have to go extremely regularly to Chester and that is only practical by car. In the year in question that was virtually every day.

"One thing I am really looking forward to is less travel (under the Cheshire East authority). In terms of distances travelled it will be greener."

County councillors actually declined an increase in allowances this year, he said, on the grounds that there would be less work today as an outgoing authority.

Broken Cross County Coun David Freear, who received £32,889, including £4,539 in travel expenses, said: "I attend Chester throughout the year on average about three days a week, which is 210 miles a week and the standard rate for local government officers, which we get the same as, is about 54p per mile."

Macclesfield West County Coun Ken Edwards, who claimed £2,680 in travel expenses, said: "It is very, very important that they are publically monitored. Any councillor should be ready to justify their expenses and be open about them."

"I only ever claim mileage – I am entitled to claim for 82 miles at whatever the rate currently is."

A Cheshire County Council spokesman said: "Councillor Findlow leads a £800m organisation employing 23,000 people. – Cheshire’s largest employer.

"For this considerable responsibility, to council taxpayers, he receives payment in line with local government middle management.

"When the Independent Remuneration Board last reviewed payment to councillors, special responsibility allowances paid to Cheshire members fell in the lowest quartile of English authorities."

THE COUNTY councillor who benefited most from travel expenses and subsistence has no connection with Macclesfield at all.

Derek Bateman, who represents Ellesmere Port, claimed more than £15,000 in travel allowances and subsistence last year – more than twice as much as anyone else.

When asked, Coun Bateman, leader of the Labour group in Cheshire County Council, said this was because he represented the authority at the Local Government Association (LGA) in several roles including chief whip of the Labour group and a member of the environment board and frequently stayed in London while attending LGA meetings.

He said: "I always travel second class by train and stay in a cheap hotel in Paddington. There can be two meetings back-to-back. To drive to London, the mileage rate would cost twice the amount."

MACCLESFIELD BOROUGH COUNCIL (total allowances and expenses claimed 2007-8):