Councillors agree to freeze allowances for another year
Sunderland councillors’ pay for the coming year will be frozen once again, in line with an independent recommendation.
Every financial year, Sunderland City Council is required to renew the members’ allowances scheme and to consider the recommendations of an independent panel.
The latest recommendation from Sunderland’s ‘Independent Remuneration Panel’ (IRP) suggested the local authority “continue with the terms of its current scheme for the 2024/2025 year”.
A report noted this was due to the recent recruitment of three new members to the pool from which panels are convened, who therefore need to “become familiar” with the council’s governance and councillor responsibilities before recommending any amendments.
The IRP also recommended a “detailed review be held during 2024/2025” to consider any amendments to the scheme and potential suggestions for the following year.
At the latest authoritywide meeting of the city council the members’ allowances scheme for 2024/2025, which includes a freeze in all allowances, was approved by councillors.
This means the annual basic allowance, which is available to all 75 city councillors, will remain at £8,369.
City council leader, councillor Graeme Miller, noted the council has now “not raised allowances for 12 years”.
At the meeting, Liberal Democrat group leader councillor Paul Edgeworth had proposed an amendment which would have seen the basic allowance reduced by five per cent to £7,951.
It also featured a “suite of changes” including various reductions in special responsibility allowances, such as those for the leader, deputy leader, cabinet secretary, cabinet members and committee chairs.
Other alterations would have included the deletion of SRAs for deputy cabinet members, vice chairs, the mayor and deputy mayor.
Cllr Edgeworth said: “I do think we need to take this opportunity to once again make sure that residents see that councillors are sharing the burden of cuts and council tax hikes that this council is imposing on them.”