Amount spent on council celebrity guests revealed

THE shocking amount of cash celebrities are paid to appear at council events in Wales – using taxpayers’ money – has been revealed.

Local authorities in South Wales alone have forked out more than £32,000 for appearances from TV presenters, chefs and comedians since 2014.

That included a £5,000 fee just for a dinner date with One Show presenter Gyles Brandreth.

Councils in Rhondda Cynon Taff and the Vale of Glamorgan have seen appearances from celebrities over the past few years, but both councils refused to say how much they paid people to appear.

In Merthyr Tydfil, Roy Noble was paid £1,500 to attend the EPIC awards, but costs were said to have been covered by ticket sales.

Figures such as Derek Brockway, Chris Coleman and Julien Macdonald have also been involved in functions organised by Merthyr council, but the celebrities declined to accept fees for their attendance.

Former Great British Bake Off winner Francis Quinn was paid £2,000 to deliver cookery demonstrations at the Caerphilly Food Festival in May 2014.

The council also paid swimmer David Roberts £1,250 to give an “inspirational talk” at the One Beat voluntary sector awareness event in October of the same year.

The council has been asked to comment.

Bridgend Business Forum has also hired celebrities to appear at events, but the council said costs were covered by sponsorship and ticket sales.

Writer, broadcaster and former MP and government whip Gyles Brandreth was paid £5,000, along with £99 travel expenses, to appear at the 2014 Christmas lunch.

Welsh comedian Rod Woodward was also paid £3,000 to appear at the 2015 event. The Taxpayers Alliance Wales has blasted the fees as a “total disregard for taxpayers’ money”.

A spokesman said: “In times of greater cutbacks it appears that the public purse is still being ravaged by decisions taken by public sector officials, sanctioned by our elected representatives.

“This total disregard for taxpayers’ money by paying extortionate appearance fees demonstrates how out of touch taxpayer-funded bodies in Wales are with ordinary hard-working people.

“The exposure of reckless spending when so many households face year- on-year council tax increases has to be welcomed.

“Thankfully, with the local elections in May 2017, the electorate will have the opportunity to take the first step to right the wrongs and the many abuses of taxpayers’ money.”