Agenda item

            The Committee considered the following report:

“1.0      Purpose of Report/Summary of Main Issues

1.1       To consider amendments to the Council’s Scheme of Allowances, adjusting the rates of Special Responsibility Allowances to reflect the increase in membership of the Belfast Waterfront and Ulster Hall Ltd. Shareholders’ Committee and the change in Party strengths at the recent Local Government Elections.

2.0       Recommendation

2.1       The Committee is recommended to:

1.      approve the increase in the allowance of the Chairperson and Deputy Chairperson of the Belfast Waterfront and Ulster Hall Ltd. Shareholders’ Committee to the same as the Council’s seven other Standing Committees;

2.      approve the adjustments to the allowances of the Council’s seven other Standing Committees; and

3.      approve the adjustments to the allowances for the Party Group Leaders, Deputy Party Group Leaders and the Party Group Secretaries.

3.0       Main Report

3.1       Key Issues

            The Local Government (Payments to Councillors) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2019, Part 2, par 3 states that the Council must agree a new Scheme of Allowances for each year in which allowances are paid.

3.1.1     Paragraphs 4(2) and 5(2) further state that the amount of basic allowance and special responsibility allowances shall be determined by the Council.

3.1.2     The Department for Communities issued a circular, LG 10/2022, dated 28th March, 2022, which set out revised maximum limits for basic and special responsibility allowances with effect from 1st April, 2021.

3.1.3     The Department for Communities issued a further circular, LG 03/2023 dated 25th January, 2023, which set out revised maximum limits for basic and special responsibility allowances with effect from 1st April, 2022 which the Council chose not to apply.

3.1.4     The allowance paid to the Chairperson and Deputy Chairperson of the Belfast Waterfront and Ulster Hall Ltd. Shareholders’ Committee was previously set at half that paid to the Chairperson and Deputy Chairperson of the other Standing Committees as it had a membership of 14 Councillors compared to the 20 Councillor membership of most of the other committees.

3.1.5     The membership of this committee, along with the Planning Committee, was increased this Council term to 20 members to bring them in line with all of the Council’s other Standing Committees.

3.1.6     For a number of years, the Council has agreed a split in the special responsibility allowance budget so as to pay a Special Responsibility Allowance to the Chairpersons and the Deputy Chairpersons of the Standing Committees and to the Party Officers (Party Leaders of parties of 12 or more members, Deputy Party Leader of parties of five or more members, and Party Secretary of parties of 12 or more members).

3.1.7     Special Responsibility Allowance

            The Committee is requested to consider whether it wishes to apply the increases to the allowances paid to the Chairperson and Deputy Chairperson of each of the Council’s Standing Committees as detailed in the table below.

            The Committee is further requested to consider if it wishes to apply the suggested increase to the allowances for Party Officers following the changes to party strengths at the recent Local Government Election.

3.1.8     Financial and Resource Implications

            There is no increase to the overall Special Responsibility budget as any increases are the result of adjustments made according to different party strengths following the recent Local Government Election.

3.1.9     Equality or Good Relations Implications/Rural Needs Assessment

            There are not any Good Relations, Equality or Rural Needs issues associate with this report.”

Division of Special Responsibility Allowances

            After discussion, it was

Moved by Councillor Nelson,

Seconded by Councillor Hanvey,

            That the Committee agrees that no allowance be paid to Party Group Secretaries.

            On a vote, four Members voted for the proposal and thirteen against and it was declared lost.

            Accordingly, the Committee agreed to adopt the recommendations contained within the report.