Pay hike on cards for county councillors

Meath's 40 county councillors are in line for a substantial pay rise in July following Cabinet approval this week for a pay increase.

A councillor’s pay is set to increase from €18,706 to €25,788 yearly with 949 city and county councillors set to benefit.

The increase will cost the taxpayer in the region of €9million annually.

The payrise takes account of the recommendations of the independent review by Sara Moorhead, published in 2020.

In addition, the unvouched expenses system which allowed councillors to claim €2,400 in expenses and €600 in mobile phone expenses is to be replaced with a compulsory vouched system allowing for €5,160 in expenses per year.

Travel and subsistence expenses of up to €3,850 will also be allowed.

Meanwhile, forty-four Meath county councillors received payments totalling over €1.1 million in 2020, according to figures published by the council.

The public representatives received the monies in allowances, expenses and other payments.

Councillors are paid an annual expense allowance which includes travel and substinence, and are also paid a municipal district allowance, which is subject to taxation.

They are paid representational payments of €17,446.23, also subject to taxation.

Councillors who hold positions of cathaoirleach of the council, chairpersons of municipal area councils, and of strategic policy committees also receive extra allowances. These are all subject to tax.

Therefore, the two councillors who held the chain of officer as first citizen of the county during 2020 – Fianna Fail’s Wayne Harding of Laytown-Bettystown area, and Kells area councillor, Independent David Gilroy of Athboy, are the top payees.

Cllr Harding’s total payment came to €37,230.40, while the current cathaoirleach, David Gilroy, is on €42,881.55, the highest payment of all the councillors.

In third place is Ratoath Municipal Area Fianna Fail councillor, Damien O’Reilly of Dunboyne, who earned €36,929.15, as he was municipal area chairperson and chairperson of the SPC on Housing, Community and Cultural Development.

The two others to go above the €30,000 mark were Eugene Cassidy, FF, Kells area, with €30,700.39, and former Mayor of Navan, Francis Deane, on €31,303.72.

SPC chairs who received €6,000 for their roles were Eugene Cassidy, Padraig Fitzsimons (FF, Navan), and Trevor Golden (Ind, Trim).

Gillian Toole (Ind, Ratoath) was paid €2,482.19 for her six-month stint as leas cathaoirleach of the council, with the current leas cathaoirleach, Aisling Dempsey, receiving a €7,035.62 chairperson allowance.

There were several personnel changes on the council during 2020, as members went on to greater things in the Dáil and Seanad, and lowest on the list are the two former Sinn Fein councillors, Johnny Guirke of Oldcastle, and Darren O’Rouke of Skryne, now both TDs, who claimed €2,810.84 and €2,582.62 respectively.