News / Politics
Mayor’s salary increase to be rejected
Plans to increase the mayor’s salary are due to be rejected at a meeting of full council next week.
An independent panel is recommending George Ferguson’s salary should be increased from £66,395 to £75,000.
But the mayor is united with all the main parties in opposing to this recommendation.
is needed now More than ever
Under plans being put forward in a report by the Members’ Remuneration Independent Review Panel, the total bill for salaries and allowances of elected members would rise from from £1,137,357 to £1,243,750.
As well as recommending a rise in the mayor’s salary, the report suggests backbench councillors’ basic allowances should also rise from £11,530 to £12,500.
It also suggests a decrease for the deputy mayor and the assistant mayors who sit on Ferguson’s cabinet.
Mark Weston, Conservative Party group leader, told Bristol24/7 the report looks certain to be rejected unanimously.
He said the increases were “exceptionally high”, adding: “In my view the report needs to go back to the renumeration panel.”
Helen Holland, Labour leader, said: “For all sorts of reasons it is not the right time for the council to be taking this type of decision. We won’t be approving it.”
Gary Hopkins, the Lib Dem group leader, added: “We would be sending the wrong signals if at this time we accepted a report that would significantly increase the council’s expenditure at a cost to Bristol’s taxpayers.”
He called for an overall cap on any proposals. “We will be voting to reject the report,” he added.
Rob Telford, Green Party leader, said it was “unconscionable” to accept the report in an era of “savage cuts” to public services.
Earlier in the year, Ferguson said he would reject the proposals, which “send out the wrong signal”.
On Wednesday he added: “Without pre-empting any decision of Full Council, I shall be listening to members’ views with interest but have already declared that I shall not be seeking support for the recommended increase in the Mayor’s allowance.”
Authors of the report state that the mayor’s salary, currently the third highest of any elected mayor in the country, should be set at a level to make the job attractive.
The report says: “In making our recommendation on an allowance for the elected Mayor, we are mindful that the Council needs to be able to attract high calibre candidates with the skills, knowledge and experience for this position – candidates who are able to commit to the leadership of the
City and therefore paid an allowance to reflect that.”
Councillors are due to vote on the proposals at a meeting of full council on Tuesday, May 26.
