AM won’t step down from county council

ANEW AM for North Wales has said she will not give up her role as a county councillor – but will give away over £13,000 of her earnings to charity.

Janet Haworth was drafted in by the Conservative party to take the regional seat in the Welsh Assembly, replacing Antoinette Sandbach who was elected MP for a constituency in Cheshire.

Ms Haworth, a grandmother of six, is juggling three political roles – as a Conwy county councillor, Llandudno town councillor and an AM, bringing home a combined pay cheque of £67,691.

Despite only having 62% attendance at Conwy meetings, the AM has said she has no intention of stepping down from any of the local roles – in case she doesn’t get reelected ected to the Assembly.y.

During ann exclusive interview with our sister paper the Daily Post just three weeks after she stepped into Cardiff Bay, Ms s Haworth said she he would be donating ing her £13,300 Conwy council wage to a local young persons’ charity. Ms Haworth wouldn’t name the charity but said council officers were looking into whether she could pay the cash for her 10 months as an AM through payroll giving.

The AM, who was on a pre-booked holiday in Scilly when called upon to take up the seat, confirmed she was closing the Llandudno guest house she runs with her partner Dennis.

Ms Haworth said she had considered standing down from the local councils but wouldn’t be doing so just in case she didn’t get voted back into the Assembly at next year’s elections.

She said: “There is less than a year before elections here in the Welsh Assem Assembly. There is at l least another yea year after that of co county council, so if I was not reelected here I would continue with my county council se seat – and given th this latest plan from the minister (redr (redrawing of the local government map) it could be longer. So it didn’t make any sense to disrupt things for what is effectively 10 months.

“If I was reelected here that’s then a different scenario....yes, I would then stand down from both councils.”

Ms Haworth, who is not yet on Twitter or Facebook, defended her county council attendance record saying councillors didn’t have to attend every meeting but could “prioritise” things they are interested in – saying licensing was her main one. She said the town council was “relatively happy” about her only attending meetings such as community and tourism and full council.

Involved in politics for around 25 years, Ms Haworth said the Welsh Government needed to prioritise improvements to the rail and A55 as it was damaging and a “poor introduction” for tourists. She also called for a full independent review of the Welsh NHS to see if it was fit for purpose following the decision to place Betsi Cadwaladr into special measures.