Candidate says keep your cash (From Tewkesbury Admag)

Candidate says keep your cash

11:57am Thursday 1st March 2007 in News

Tewkesbury resident John Badham believes councillors and council officers are not taking their share of cuts needed to balance the budget.

He is so fed up with the situation, he is going to stand at local elections in May as a No Allowance' candidate.

This means that if elected as a borough councillor, he will not collect allowances due to him.

He is hoping that others who share his view will join him and that his stand will encourage existing councillors to look at their own situation.

He said in order to balance the budget, the grant to the town museum has been cut by £2,000, car parking is still some of the most expensive in the area and flowers are no longer being planted in municipal beds.

However, councillors have refused to take a cut in their allowances. They currently receive £9,000 a year, more than most other authorities of compar-able size.

Council officers are keeping their car allowances of up to £3,500 a year for a further two years and plans to close the subsidised staff canteen to save £3,000, and potentially bring in a rent of £13,000 a year, are not going ahead because of the effect on morale.

Mr Badham said: "This looks to me like the tail wagging the dog.The first priority of our council seems to be to look after themselves rather than the people they represent."

Mayor Mike Szytmiak said: "The Tewkesbury Independent Group did propose a 10 per cent cut in members allowances, to in order to fund some of the projects in the budget, but the motion fell."

He added that as mayor he has donated all his travelling expenses to the Woodlands Trust to fund the planting of trees.

Anyone interesting in joining John Badham in his campaign can contact him at johnbadham90@hotmail.com.