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OBSERVER: Councillor allowance hike was sadly all-too predictable
Your letters, emails and opinions - Boston Standard, Lincolnshire: bostonstandard.co.uk, on Twitter @standardboston
It was a good job I didn’t hold my breath in anticipation of councillors not accepting their suggested allowance increase.
As predicted they took not one bit of notice of pleas to think about what they were doing – increasing their own income while at the same time considering reducing staff wages – and gaily went on to accept the recommendations on the independent remuneration panel.
Regular internet viewers should go on to the council website and read the information presented to the council meeting concerning the increase. At the same time they should read the comment on the council’s home page regarding the increase. It’s a classic ‘fudge.’
I couldn’t believe leader Coun Bedford actually commented on radio and television that Boston people ‘didn’t realise how lucky they were to have the council they have now and councillors deserved the increase’, or words to that effect.
Just to rub salt into the wounds, the report presented to the council also recommended that there be no additional provision in the allowances for IT expenses, as this should now be considered as part of the basic allowance. Any existing arrangements for IT should be discontinued.
The idea behind this was that the money saved would go towards the increased allowances. Was this recommendation accepted? Of course not!
On more than one occasion in my letter writing days I was highly critical of the BBI but I have to say that the present incumbents of West Street give the impression they are nothing more than highly incompetent – come back, BBI, all is forgiven!
·Before I forget there was one bit of ‘good’ news for the council this week. They were the winners of the award for the best heritage scheme in England this year, given at the Heritage Champions conference, for the Market Place refurbishment.
It was awarded for going back to a more traditional market place, ‘a shared space in which the vehicle does not automatically assume priority’. Well, they certainly got that bit wrong!
I shudder to think what some of the other nominees looked like – and no, it isn’t April 1 yet!
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Weather for Boston, Lincolnshire
Saturday 18 May 2013
Today
Cloudy
Temperature: 6 C to 14 C
Wind Speed: 17 mph
Wind direction: West
Tomorrow
Sunny spells
Temperature: 8 C to 17 C
Wind Speed: 18 mph
Wind direction: North east
