UKIP Derby group leader criticises decision to pay more councillor allowances

The leader of the UKIP group on Derby City Council has criticised the decision to pay more money out in councillors' expenses.

Cllr Alan Graves says that the council is spending money that it hasn't got at a time that it is sacking staff to cut costs.

I don't understand how a personnel committee chair can sit in front of our staff, knowing they are going to sack them, knowing they are getting extra money

The decision was made to create two new cabinet positions on the council with a special responsibility allowance and to award a special responsibility allowance to the chair of the personnel committee responsible for cutting staff.

Whenever they are able to, UKIP councillors abolish the cabinet system in councils that allow decisions such as this to be taken undemocratically and replace it with the committee system that gives all councillors an equal say on decisions.

Cllr Graves attempted to reduce the number of councillors by a third last year which would have saved a quarter of a million pounds but was thwarted when his motion to the council was illegally amended by members of the ruling Labour cabinet to remove references to cutting the number of councillors and turn it into an attack on government cuts.