Rutland County Councillors have opted not to apply a retrospective increase in the level of allowances paid to Elected Members, despite recommendations from an independent panel advising the council to take steps to bring them in line with other unitary authorities.
The Council has a legal requirement to maintain an Independent Remuneration Panel, which provides the authority with advice on its allowances scheme and the amounts paid to County Councillors for the work they do. The Council must consider this advice but can determine what action it wishes to take with respect to Members' Allowances.
A recent review by the independent Welland Partnership Remuneration Panel found that Rutland County Council’s Member Allowances, including its Basic Allowance and Special Responsibility Allowances, remain notably lower than other unitary authorities, having been frozen by Councillors since 2020.
Among its recommendations, the Panel advised Rutland County Council to apply a retrospective increase in Members' Allowances of 1.75% for 2021/22 and 6.99% for 2022/23, increasing Rutland’s Basic Allowance for County Councillors from £4,944 to £5,382.15.
After reviewing the Panel’s findings at a Special Full Council Meeting on Monday 23 January, Councillors agreed that steps should be taken to address the gap in Member Allowances compared to other unitary authorities. However, it was decided that it would not be appropriate to raise Rutland’s Basic Allowance at this time – particularly in light of the Council’s current budget position and future financial uncertainty. Instead, the Council will consider how best to close the gap following local elections in May 2023 and will index-link its allowances to Joint Negotiating Committee (JNC) Pay Awards in the meantime, to prevent the current gap growing further.
The full Report on Members' Allowances prepared by the independent Welland Partnership Remuneration Panel and considered at Full Council on Monday 23 January can be read on our Meetings page.
The report is also available for inspection at our offices in Oakham.