Lichfield District Councillors confirm allowance increase - here's what each role is being paid
Councillors in Lichfield have approved recommendations handing them an £800 a year pay rise.
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This follows a report by an independent remuneration panel which recommends an increase of allowances to £5,067 from £4,214 at Lichfield District Council.
Despite increases in the majority of roles with special responsibilities, typically committee chairs, cabinet members and opposition leaders, not all will receive an increase. Councillors overwhelmingly supported the increase, however a number of Labour councillors abstained from voting.
A number of committee vice chairs are set to see a decrease in their special responsibility allowance. At the same time shadow cabinet members are set to receive an additional allowance for the first time.
Councillor John Smith confirmed he would not vote against the plans. He said: “I’m not going to vote against the recommendations because I think if you actually appoint an independent body you should actually take note of what they say.”
Councillor Derick Cross said: “I welcome these recommendations by the independent panel. I have fought and argued over the last six years for this to go to an independent panel to re-look at it for us and I’m very pleased to see that we’ve now got it in front of us and we should approve it and move on.”
This is the first increase in allowances at the council in seven years. A previous remuneration panel report was rejected in 2022 which proposed increasing the basic allowance to £4,734.
Changes to careers allowance and parental leave were welcomed by Councillor Miles Trent. The report noted that: “If the current situation was maintained it risks returning to the era when being a Councillor was restricted to those who could afford it or were willing to live in straitened circumstances for the sake of public service.”
The full list of changes:
Basic allowance
Previous allowance: £4,214
New allowance: £5,067
Leader of Council
Previous allowance: £12,641
New allowance: £15,201
Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member
Previous allowance: £7,585
New allowance: £9,121
Other Cabinet Members
Previous allowance: £6,952
New allowance: £8,361
Chair Planning Committee
Previous allowance: £6,320
New allowance: £7,089
Vice Chair Planning Committee
Previous allowance: £1,589
New allowance: £1,772
Chair Regulatory and Licensing Committee
Previous allowance: £2,529
New allowance: £3,800
Vice Chair Regulatory and Licensing Committee
Previous allowance: £632
New allowance: £760
Chair Overview and Scrutiny Committee
Previous allowance: £2,529
New allowance: £5,067
Vice Chair Overview and Scrutiny Committee
Previous allowance: £632
New allowance: £1,013
Chair Audit Committee
Previous allowance: £1,589
New allowance: £3,040
Vice Chair Audit Committee
Previous allowance: £632
New allowance: £608
Chair Standards Committee
Previous allowance: £1,589
New allowance: £1,520
Vice Chair Standards Committee
Previous allowance: £632
New allowance: £304
Chair of Council
Previous allowance: £2,885
New allowance: £3,800
Vice Chair of Council
Previous allowance: £721
New allowance: £760
Chair Employment Committee
Previous allowance: £1,589
New allowance: £1,520
Vice Chair Employment Committee
Previous allowance: £632
New allowance: £304
Principal Opposition Group Leader
Previous allowance: £2,885
New allowance: £4,560
Principal Opposition Group Deputy Leader
Previous allowance: £721
New allowance: £912
Shadow Cabinet Members
Previous allowance: N/A
New allowance: £684
Leader Minor Opposition Group (five or more members)
Previous allowance: N/A
New allowance: £760
