Issue - meetings

(a)       That level 1 be paid to all Cabinet Members and Committee Chairs;

(b)       That band b be approved as the level of payment for the Chair and Vice-Chair of the Council; and

(c)        That the Schedule of Member Remuneration shown in Appendix 1 be approved for 2016/17.

The Member Engagement Manager presented on the Schedule of Member Remuneration for 2016/17.

Consultation had been carried out on the proposals with the final report being published in February 2016 which provided for the levels of payment to Members to remain as they were for 2015/16, with the basic allowance payable to all elected Members remaining at £13,300 p.a., The levels of payment to the Leader, Deputy Leader, Chair of the Council, Vice Chair and leader of the largest opposition group were also to remain the same as they were for 2015/16.  The maximum number of senior salaries payable by local authorities had also not been changed with the maximum number for Flintshire remaining at 18.

In the draft proposals there were two tiers of Cabinet Member and Committee Chair payments which the Council was opposed to at the meeting on 20 October 2015.  Following the consultation and meetings between Independent Remuneration Panel for Wales (IRPW) representatives and Heads of Democratic Services across Wales, the two tier approach had not been made mandatory but was now available as a ‘flexible approach’.  Level 1 for Executive (Cabinet) Members was £29,000 and level 2 was £26,100.  For Committee Chairs, level 1 was £22,000 and level 2 was £20,000 but given that the Council was opposed to that the previous autumn, it was considered unlikely that there would be any support for that now so it was not recommended for implementation.

On payments to the Civic Head and Deputy the IRPW gave local choice to Councils as to which of the three bands outlined in the report it wished to apply.  For the last two years the Council had determined that the middle band ‘b’ was the appropriate one for Flintshire with the remuneration for the civic head at £21,500 and the deputy civic head at £16,000.

Councillor Attridge moved the recommendations of the report which was seconded by Councillor Dunbar and on being put to the vote, was carried.

RESOLVED:

(a)       That level 1 be paid to all Cabinet Members and Committee Chairs;

(b)       That band b be approved as the level of payment for the Chair and Vice-Chair of the Council; and

(c)        That the Schedule of Member Remuneration shown in Appendix 1 be approved for 2016/17.