North Somerset councillors' allowances increase by 30 per cent

THE total bill for North Somerset councillors' allowances rocketed by 30 per cent last year to more than £750,000.

Councillors were widely criticised last April for voting to increase their basic allowance by 24 per cent.

But information presented in the council's annual accounts show that, when added to other new perks, taxpayers are actually forking out an extra £175,383 – equating to a 29.5 per cent increase.

It brings the total bill up to £769,383, from £594,000 in 2007/08 and £582,000 in 2006/07.

And in a change from previous policy, each councillor's allowances and expenses are published individually rather than one combined total for all 61 councillors.

The breakdown reveals:

15 councillors (24.6 per cent) controversially joined the local government pension scheme, adding from £589 to £3,989 to their allowances;

27 councillors (44.3 per cent) were paid special responsibility allowances totalling £236,190 on top of their basic allowance of £8,007;

17 councillors (27.9) per cent were paid more than £15,000 in total.

A spokesman for North Somerset said it had published the full figures in a bid to be more open and transparent.

But they have been criticised by campaign group The TaxPayers' Alliance.

Its chief executive Matthew Elliott said: "These figures paint an alarming picture.

"At a time when ordinary people are struggling in the recession, councillors are voting themselves larger and larger allowances.

"Many of these councillors are also taking advantage of the Local Government Pension Scheme and will enjoy gold-plated pensions on top of other perks.

"Councillors need to realise that their position is about public service, not personal enrichment."

The highest overall payment was to council leader Nigel Ashton, who received a total of £35,536, equating to £8,007 basic allowance, £25,269 special responsibility allowance and £2,260 expenses. He has not joined the council's pension scheme.

Second on the list is deputy leader Elfan Ap Rees, costing £31,005, of which £8,007 is basic allowance, £17,688 special responsibility allowance, £3,989 pension and £1,321 expenses.

The highest cost, £17,984, of a non-executive councillor was to Portishead councillor David Jolley.

On top of the basic allowance of £8,007 he received £6,318 responsibility allowance, £2,421 pension and expenses of £1,238.

The most expensive opposition councillor was Nailsea Lib Dem Andy Cole, costing a total of £17,742, consisting of his basic allowance, plus £5,690 responsibility allowance, £2,315 pension and £1,730 expenses.

The lowest total for a councillor who served a full year is £5,470 to Clevedon councillor David Shopland.

He has never accepted the basic allowance, but received £4,901 special responsibility allowance and £569 pension.

The accounts also show the number of council employees earning more than £50,000 has risen from 77 in 2007-08 to 85 last year, though only two received more than £100,000, compared to four the year before.

To see a breakdown of each councillor's allowances, click the link on the right.