THE RATES rise announced last week is to partly pay for a planned increase in councillors’ wages, it has emerged.
Local householders and businesses are set for yet another hike in their district rates bill this year. However, the 3.76 percent increase could have been lower if not for the fact the Council has budgeted £400,000 to help fund a potential rise in councillors’ wages.
Late last year a review proposed raising councillors’ allowances. However, this has yet to be formalised by the Department of Communities, so the increase has not yet been applied.
Despite this, the Council’s finance department included the provision of £400,000 in its budget for the year ahead to fund the potential increase.
Speaking during last Thursday’s budget and rates meeting in Enniskillen, Cllr Victor Warrington proposed removing that £400,000 from the budget estimate, meaning the Council could pass a lower rate increase of 2.75 percent.
“The Minister has not brought [the recommendation] to the floor of the Assembly yet to get it rubber stamped,” Cllr Warrington said of the potential increase.
“Certainly, what we are hearing and what a lot of people are hearing, that £400,000 that we have set is too high. There are some councillors who have actually not put any money into the coffers for it, and others have put in something less.”
Council chief executive Alison McCullagh said the amount had been estimated on professional advice. She said if the increase did not go ahead, or if the increase was less than anticipated, the money would go into the Council’s general reserve.a
Speaking after the meeting, the SDLP’s Cllr Adam Gannon said his party was also against the addition to the budget.
“We are against putting aside £400,000 for councillors’ back pockets, for a pay rise that may or may not even happen, a pay rise we have no clue how much it costs or what it will be,” said Cllr Gannon.
“We think that is completely and utterly wrong, that councillors decided to put that straight on to the people, without even knowing what was going to happen.”
Cllr Gannon agreed that removing the provision in the budget for the councillor’s allowance would have helped significantly reduce the district rate.
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