Mid and East Antrim: councillors agree special responsibility payments
Mid and East Antrim councillors approved special responsibility payments at their annual general meeting held at The Braid in Ballymena.
Councillors who hold special responsibilities will receive a payment for those duties. An elected member is only entitled to one special responsibility payment at a time.
The maximum budget allocation for special responsibility allowance payments which Mid and East Antrim can make in the current year is £83,944.
The chairs of the Planning, Corporate Resources, Policy and Governance, Audit and Scrutiny, Neighbourhoods and Communities, Environment and Economy and Personnel committees will receive payments of £500 per month and vice- chairs will be paid £300 monthly.
Chair of the Planning Committee is Larne Lough DUP Alderman Paul Reid; chair of Corporate Resources, Policy and Governance, Ballymena TUV Councillor Matthew Armstrong; chair of Audit and Scrutiny, Bannside DUP Ald Tom Gordon; chair of Neighbourhoods and Communities, Larne Lough Alliance Cllr Maeve Donnelly; chair of Environment and Economy, Larne Lough DUP Cllr Gregg McKeen; chair of Personnel, Carrickfergus Castle Alliance Cllr Robin Stewart.
Group party leaders will receive payments of £40 monthly. A Partnership Panel representative will be paid £357 per meeting. This will leave a “contingency” of £22,516.
Separately, an allowance of £1,000 per month will be payable to the Mayor with an allowance of £650 per month available to the Deputy Mayor.
The Mayor of Mid and East Antrim for 2024/25 is Braid DUP Ald Beth Adger MBE. Ballymena Sinn Fein Cllr Breanainn Lyness is Deputy Mayor.
Basic Allowance
Meanwhile, an annual basic allowance of £17,030 shall be paid to each councillor. If a councillor is suspended from duties, the part of the basic allowance payable for the period of suspension will be withheld.
Councillors are eligible for the payment set by the Department for Communities (DfC) under the Local Government Finance Act (Northern Ireland) 2011 and the Local Government (Payments to Councillors) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2019.
The special responsibility allowance is reviewed on an annual basis by DfC and also by the local government authority to set its allocations.
Councillors in Northern Ireland are entitled to claim a dependants’ carers’ allowance towards reimbursement of costs necessarily incurred in providing care for an eligible dependant, while carrying out an approved duty.
The allowance may be paid for a dependant who requires full-time care and who resides with the councillor as part of that household.
A councillor or committee member is entitled to claim travel and subsistence allowances whilst carrying out an approved duty. Rates have been approved by DfC.
An allowance of 65 pence per mile is payable for cars with engines above 1199cc. Mileage allowance is also available for other car engines, motorcycles, pedal cycles and electric cars. Meal and overnight allowances are also payable.
Last month, councillors agreed to retain a six-week meeting schedule which has reduced from monthly, commencing on Monday evening (June 10) with a full meeting of the council.
Michelle Weir, Local Democracy Reporter