COUNCILLORS are about to give themselves a pay increase which sees their allowances treble in the last two years.
The three per cent increase will see the overall total for allowances for members go from £237,000 in October 2000 to the current sum of £750,000.
At a cabinet meeting on Tuesday night, councillors agreed to the rise, and it is expected to be ratified at a meeting of the full council tomorrow night (Thursday).
The amount exceeds the council's budget for allowances by almost £46,000 - meaning the cash will have to be taken from elsewhere to cover the shortfall.
The rise comes in the wake of a huge overspend by the council's social services department last year which has seen £6 million hacked from the department's budget this year.
The re-structured council now has 44 councillors earning extra allowances for "special responsibilities" which sees them earning anything from £2,000 to £10,000 extra.
July 17, 2002 14:30
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