THE TOTAL amount paid to New Ross Town Council members throughout 2013 amounted to €77,801.40
The figure, which was released to The Echo by New Ross Town Council officials, was composed of representational payments and fixed allowances in addition to expense claims for attending conferences, travel and subsistence, accommodation and flight costs.
In addition, Cllr. Paul Crowdle and Cllr. Niamh Fitzgibbon were paid Chairperson’s expenses in respect of their successive roles at the head of the Chamber over the last 12 months. Cllr. Fitzgibbon is the current Cathaoirleach and will be the last ever Chairperson of the Town Council which will be disbanded in May.
In terms of the overall amount paid to members Cllr. Crowdle came out on top with payments of €15,541.36 representing 20 per cent of the overall allocation paid to members.
Cllr. Niamh Fitzgibbon was the second highest paid member having received €10,877.90 which equated to 14 per cent of the overall payments.
Cllr. Victor Furness was paid €9,323.21 for the year (12 per cent) with Cllr. Michael Sheehan next in line with a figure of €8,134.32 (10 per cent). However, Cllr. Sheehan also received representational payments and allowances in his role as a member of Wexford Co. Council.
Cllrs. John Dwyer and Anthony Connick shared around 10 per cent of the allocation with figures of €7,850.06 and €7,703.18 respectively while Cllr. Jas O’Callaghan in his first year as a member received €6,177 in representational payments and allowances.
Cllr. Bobby Dunphy and Cllr. Ollie Somers were paid the lowest amount of money (€4,352.35 and €1.731.02) respectively which was comprised of representational payments and allowances only.
However, neither councillor served a full term as Cllr. Dunphy resigned his position on the local authority in the wake of his resigning from the Labour Party and Cllr. Somers was co-opted onto the local authority in his place.
Of all the full-term sitting members Cllr. Annette Larkin received the least amount of money during the last term having been paid €6,111.
Cllrs. Larkin, Somers, O’Callaghan, Dwyer and Connick claimed no accommodation of flight expenses for 2013.
Cllr. Furness received €195.20 and €243.98 in respect of accommodation and flights while Cllr. Sheehan’s claims for the same amounted to €1,195.50 and €3,124.67 respectively.
Cllr. Crowdle claimed €1,000.30 for accommodation and €2,900.70 in flight expenses while Cllr. Fitzgibbon claimed €635 in accommodation and flight expenses.
In the case of Cllrs. Crowdle and Sheehan their involvement in last year’s JFK50 commemoration saw them attending the graveside of JFK in Arlington Cemetery, Virginia, as part of the ceremony that saw the eternal flame being brought from the late American President’s graveside to the New Ross quay-front where it was used to light the town’s Emigrant Flame.
Cllrs. Furness, Connick, and Dwyer received conferences fees to the value of €804, €404 and €725 respectively.
The representational payments made to sitting Town Councillors is €4,141 while the standard allowance paid is €2,036.
These figures were somewhat less for Cllrs. Dunphy and Somers in view of the fact they didn’t sit for a full term on the local authority.
Cllr. Sheehan’s representational payment for the Town Council was incorporated into his payment as a member of Wexford Co. Council.
In view of Government measures to radically change local Government Town Councils across Ireland will be disbanded in May and will be replaced by Municipal District Councils. In addition Wexford County Council will go from having 21 members to 34. At the last meeting of the local authority Head of Finance, Annette O’Neill, confirmed to the members that if the current rate of payments for County Councillors remains in place when the new system is implemented the cost of local Government in Wexford will increase by between €25,000 and €30,000.
