Cllr John Dodd has welcomed the U-turn by Labour Councillors
on Liverpool City Council to stop claiming multiple special allowances on
Merseytravel and to back Lib Dem calls for councillors allowances to be set by
an independent panel. Cllr Dodd is the Sefton Council Liberal Democrat
representative on Merseyside Integrated Transport Authority (Merseytravel).
Cllr Dodd said ”Liverpool City Labour Councillors agreed to
claim only one allowance each in advance of an independent panel being set
up.” The U-turn, which could save
Council Tax payers £25,000, comes just weeks after the same Labour councillors
rejected Lib Dem calls for independent scrutiny.
Cllr Dodd went on to say ”Merseytravel is the only local
authority in the country where councillors are allowed to set their own pay. They have created 31
paid positions to be shared between 13 Labour councillors on Merseytravel”.
Cllr Dodd also said that “Labour Councillors in Liverpool
have been forced to face the public anger at their allowances scandal, and have
finally been shamed into taking action. It's time for Sefton Labour councillor
Cllr Mark Dowd, the Chairman of Merseytravel, who earns £48,000 from
Merseytravel to take the lead from his Liverpool colleagues and stop claiming
more than one special responsibility allowance on Merseytravel."
"Cllr Dowd, instead of claiming Special Responsibility
Allowances for the post as Chair of Merseytravel, Chair of Rail Services and
Chair of Policy and Resources Committees, you could do the decent thing for the
residents of Sefton. Come on, Cllr Mark
Dowd!"
Cllr Dodd said ”research shows that the transport authority pays Councillors more than other transport bodies”. Merseytravel is the only travel authority in the country that has not set up an independent allowances panel. Instead, members vote for their own pay.
At the Annual Meeting of the Transport Authority, Cllr Dodd remarked “After the MPs expenses scandal, it’s amazing that Labour Councillors think they can get away with setting their own salaries, and also claim multiple allowances for attending meetings. When the public see over 30 paid jobs created and shared between just 13 Labour Councillors, they must think the transport authority is running a gravy train. Merseytravel costs more than any other transport authority”.
At the Annual Meeting of the Transport Authority, Cllr Dodd remarked “After the MPs expenses scandal, it’s amazing that Labour Councillors think they can get away with setting their own salaries, and also claim multiple allowances for attending meetings. When the public see over 30 paid jobs created and shared between just 13 Labour Councillors, they must think the transport authority is running a gravy train. Merseytravel costs more than any other transport authority”.
