Allowance freeze for councillors

The figures, published by the Department for Communities, show that the basic allowance for councillors will remain at £15,071 per annum, the same as the 2019/2020 financial year.

Councillors will, however, see an increase in the amount they are able to claim in Dependants’ Carers’ Allowance.

This allowance is payable towards the cost of employing another person to undertake a councillor’s caring responsibilities while they attend meetings.

The Standard Dependants’ Carers’ Allowance has increased from £8.21 an hour to £8.72 while the Specialist Dependants’ Carers’ Allowance has increased from £16.42 to £17.44.

The maximum that can be claimed a month from the Standard Dependants’ Carers’ allowance is £454 while in the Specialist Dependants’ Carers’ Allowance category, the maximum that can be claimed is £907 a month.

A spokesperson for Council confirmed there are currently three councillors in receipt of Dependants’ Carers’ Allowance.

Mileage rates have not changed since April 2017.

A councillor driving a car to attend council business is entitled to claim 65p per mile and an additional 5p per per mile, per passenger, if they are car pooling with fellow councillors.

Those who drive electric vehicles can claim up to 45p per mile while motorcycle riders can claim 24p per mile. Councillors who cycle to matters of council business are entitled to claim 20p per mile.

Special Responsibility Allowance payments are also available for top positions within council. These apply to posts such as Lord Mayor, Deputy Lord Mayor or committee chair.

The allowance would mean a maximum individual payment of £22,924 in addition to a councillor’s salary.

This sum applies to councils with a population of over 200,000. Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council has a population of at least 210,300 citizens according to a council spokesperson.

Adam Morton , Local Democracy Reporting Service