Iain Ramage has taken his free dinner investigations further and the P&J approached all 80 councillors to ask them if they took free dinners.
24 put their hands up. 4 declined to comment. No response from 24. 11 Don't do lunch and 17 paid.
Last Thursday Michael Green and Liz contacted the Gurn with details of their current lunching details. Michael pays for his lunch, Liz doesn't pay for lunches but doesn't claim travel expenses.
As for Laurie Fraser and Stephen Fuller - well, not stealing the P&J's thunder for now, you can find out in the big spread on pages 2 and 3 of today's issue.
Gurn comment: we fail to understand that at a time when many Highland residents are having to go foodbanks to eat that councillors cannot see that it is simply toxic for them to take a free lunch.
Do other council workers get them?
ReplyDeleteIf any Council employee is away from home on business then they can claim for expenses. They need receipts and the "golden goose" level that I was entitled to in the civil service 40 odd years ago were vastly superior and no receipts required! Some folk cleared more in expenses than salary and at that time such benefits were tax free!! Ah the good old days of colonial service ....
ReplyDeleteI see Nairn councillor Stephen Fuller claims a free lunch.
ReplyDeleteIn common with most people I know I take a packed lunch or buy something out of my own money at lunchtime. In the current climate of council cuts and folk reliant on food banks it beggars belief that anyone working for the council accepts a free lunch, especially if they're councillors. I hope they at least declare it to the revenue so they pay tax on it as a perk
No doubt some councillors now they've been exposed in the headlights will cease the practice but I'm sure others will brazen it out. Time for the practice to be stopped
As for not having time to go out and get their own lunch sorry but some days I'm taking my home made sandwich into meetings to eat such is the pressure on my time
Excuses seem flimsy and easy to say 'I'm not claiming in the future'. The fact is some councillors have been caught with their snouts in the trough, hopefully this will be remembered when the elections come around and people will vote accordingly
"Liz doesn't pay for lunches but doesn't claim travel expenses."
ReplyDeleteI would hope none of our councillors claimed any travel expenses or meals, I don't know anyone who commutes from Nairn to work in Inverness who are able to claim either, just because the "carrot" is dangling in front of your face doesn't mean you have to take a "nibble", shame on any who do.
the question i always ask is this
ReplyDeleteif it takes the public to expose this and shame these councillors over simple things like these meals, then should they even been in the position they are in?
The sole purpose of the Position is to SERVE the public within the council they are in - not to squeeze every perk, and every £1000 a day car rental, until they get caught and "exposed" and this is AFTER - A F T E R years of cutting other essential services FIRST to the bone - tell the elderly who can hardly get 10 seconds with a care worker about the councillor claiming their free meal, tell the kids at the food bank picking out their tin of bins about the councillors tucking into a free meal - and tell the guy who has to get 2 buses to a job interview about the councillors running up a £1000 a day car hire bill.
yes the job should be well paid, its a responsible (!) job, but when its the public money they are spending that they are cutting from everywhere else it should START with them
The sooner we revolutionise Councils in this country the better.
The car rental charges were being run up by the Council for employees anon. They are not a perk for councillors.
ReplyDeleteCast your minds back to the old days. Councillors in the District Councils and Regional Councils were given remunerations in the form of 'expenses' which included travel and subsistence expenses and often were provided with a meal when there was a long day of business meetings. All councillors got the same meal and removed the need for expenses forms and also avoided some people eating steak while others got soup and a sandwich. Not too much fuss back then? Did you know about the Scottish Local Authorities Remuneration Committee (SLARC) which was established under the provisions of the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004 to advise Scottish Ministers on the payment by Local Authorities of remuneration (including pensions), allowances and the reimbursement of expenses incurred by local authority councillors in accordance with criteria specified by Scottish Ministers from time to time. The Committee was stood down in February 2013. I highlight that not all those working in local government, includes councillors if they are getting a remuneration, are equal. The rates of remuneration for use of a private car are higher for councillors. Some of the Gurn readers might ask why is this? My view is that it is probably a hangover from the now disbanded SLARC Committee? Should it be changed? Why not have one rate for all and save some money into the bargain!
ReplyDeleteWise man say : No such thing as a FREE LUNCH.
ReplyDeleteOn the first day of Christmas
ReplyDeletemy councilor gave to me:
One free council lunch
but nothing for my tea
On the second day of Christmas
my councilor gave to me:
Two expenses forms
One free council lunch
but nothing for my tea
On the third day of Christmas
my councilor gave to me:
Three poor excuses
Two expenses forms
One free council lunch
but nothing for my tea
On the forth day of Christmas
My councilor gave to me:
Four food bank vouchers
Three poor excuses
Two expenses forms
One free council lunch
but nothing for my tea
On the fifth day of Christmas
my councilor gave to me:
Five percent tax increase
Four food bank vouchers
Three poor excuses
Two expenses forms
One free council lunch
but nothing for my tea
On the sixth day of Christmas
my councilor gave to me:
Six party pledges
Five percent tax increase
Four food bank vouchers
Three poor excuses
Two expenses forms
One free council lunch
but nothing for my tea
On the seventh day of Christmas
my councilor gave to me:
Seven empty promises
Six party pledges
Five percent tax increase
Four food bank vouchers
Three poor excuses
Two expenses forms
One free council lunch
but nothing for my tea
On the eighth day of Christmas
my councilor gave to me:
Eight tones of salt grit
Seven empty promises
Six party pledges
Five percent tax increase
Four food bank vouchers
Three poor excuses
Two expenses forms
One free council lunch
but nothing for my tea
On the ninth day of Christmas
my councilor gave to me:
Nine council cut backs
Eight tones of salt grit
Seven empty promises
Six party pledges
Five percent tax increase
Four food bank vouchers
Three poor excuses
Two expenses forms
One free council lunch
but nothing for my tea
On the tenth day of Christmas
my councilor gave to me:
Ten planning applications
Nine council cut backs
Eight tones of salt grit
Seven empty promises
Six party pledges
Five percent tax increase
Four food bank vouchers
Three poor excuses
Two expenses forms
One free council lunch
but nothing for my tea
On the eleventh day of Christmas
my councilor gave to me:
Eleven council meetings
Ten planning applications
Nine council cut backs
Eight tones of salt grit
Seven empty promises
Six party pledges
Five percent tax increase
Four food bank vouchers
Three poor excuses
Two expenses forms
One free council lunch
but nothing for my tea
On the twelfth day of Christmas
Twelve icy pavements
Eleven council meetings
Ten planning applications
Nine council cut backs
Eight tones of salt grit
Seven empty promises
Six party pledges
Five percent tax increase
Four food bank vouchers
Three poor excuses
Two expenses forms
One free council lunch
but nothing for my tea
Where is Holy Willie when you need a sanctimonious prayer or 2?
ReplyDeleteYeah and if you're a potential property developer as Liz is you get out of going to many planning meetings as well. I doubt there's any decrease in her salary though, just not as good a service for the people of Nairn in her role as councillor
ReplyDeleteIs Liz the only "potential" property developer? Aren't we all one way or another?
ReplyDeleteAnon@8.31, if my memory serves me right I seem to remember that back in the old day's, unlike now, District Councillors did not get paid a salary and were only reimbursed expenses?
ReplyDeleteAnon@6.15pm, exactly how do you suggest or envisage Councils should be revolutionised?
get rid of most of them
ReplyDeleteCouncillors should claim what they are entitled to. If they claim expenses to which they are not entitled, that's fraud and those guilty of it should be prosecuted. The complaints about expenses claims are just sanctimonious claptrap.
ReplyDelete