Councillor's Basic Allowance To Increase By 5%

Communities Minister Gordon Lyons has announced that the Northern Ireland Executive has approved a 5% increase to the basic allowance for local councillors, effective from 1 April 2025.

The Minister also revealed plans to amend legislation, granting his department the authority to determine the rate of the basic allowance for all councillors in the future.

Currently, individual councils are responsible for setting the allowance rate within parameters established by the Department for Communities. This has led to a situation where councillors receive varying levels of pay depending on the council they serve.

Minister Lyons' announcement is a direct response to the recommendations outlined in the Review of the Role and Responsibilities of Councillors in Northern Ireland report, which was submitted to his department in August of last year. The report addressed several areas, including the remuneration of councillors. Speaking about the decision, Minister Lyons stated: "I am pleased that the Executive has unanimously agreed to the proposals that I have brought forward. I have considered carefully the recommendations in the report and, in doing so, I needed to balance any increase in the basic allowance for councillors against the cost to ratepayers in what is an extremely challenging financial climate. I need to ensure that increases in rates bills are kept to the minimum."

The Minister justified the 5% increase by referencing wider public sector pay settlements, which he noted were generally around the same level. He also cited the "volume and complexity of council duties," the significant time commitment required, and the fact that the role and responsibilities of councillors had not been reviewed since 2013.

Furthermore, Minister Lyons addressed the decision to centralise the setting of councillor allowances: "I also accept that responsibility for setting the amount of the allowance actually paid to councillors should be removed from councils and instead set by my department. It is reasonable that councillors, across all council areas, should be paid the same amount of basic allowance."

The move to standardise councillor pay across Northern Ireland aims to address existing discrepancies and ensure a consistent level of remuneration for elected representatives regardless of their council area. The 5% increase and the legislative changes are set to come into effect from the beginning of April 2025.