Ah look at them, like two brainless peas in a pod and the punctuation and grammar skills to match. Nick Thompson whose real job is apparently a DJ, is making a rather interesting assertion that caught our eye. He’s confidently stating that Councillors Andrew Cooper, Jeremy Oates and Robert Pritchard have never had a real job. Now we know that these gentlemen actually do all three have full time paid jobs. We also know that whilst not trying to devalue Mr Thompson’s choice of profession, their jobs are very much more real and involved than supping pints behind a mixer playing tunes.
Naturally Troll Boy Paul Brina Brindley is not going to correct him even though he knows this small fact that invalidates Thompson as a reliable source. He goes in with the tired old repeats, but says they are ‘desperate to keep their allowances’. So shall we take a look at these allowances?
You can see them here on the Council website for the official source. They aren’t much to write home about when you are a regular Councillor, which on the Borough, Pritchard is, he gets (in round figures) 5k per annum for this. If you are on the Councils’ Cabinet which Oates and Cooper are currently, then you get an additional 10k. Other roles and responsibilities get you different amounts. Tamworth Borough Councils allowances page is somewhat confusing having Councillors that have long ago left and varying amounts for each for some reason.
Now that seems a tidy sum doesn’t it. Here’s the kicker, those sums incur tax and national insurance payments like a regular job. Add up all the hours that councillors spend at meetings and answering residents emails (yes we are sure that there are some crap ones that don’t) but then accompanied with the absolute shit they get thrown at them by morons who populate Facebook and the like as Mr Thompson is here, and you would actually wonder why they bother. We know that pretty much all Councillors have full time jobs. Which seems to be a huge surprise to those throwing the shit. We aren’t saying they aren’t getting in a reasonable sum, but would you do it and face the general public for that?
Allowances for Councillors are so that they can afford to do the job and pay for expenses they incur in doing it. It ensures a level playing field for people who aren’t as well off, to be able to stand for election and not be disadvantaged by the lack of resource to do it. It’s not rocket science really. They certainly aren’t creaming off the tax payer unless they really do sit back and do nothing. This is something we cannot see or measure granted, but with the amount of lies and rubbish thrown around, you’d think only the likes of Richard Kingstone do anything out of 30 Councillors on the Council.
So are they really doing it just for the money? They’re pretty damn masochistic if they are. We’re not asking you to get the violins out here, because some do absolutely love feeling important, and they do it for that reason, and we know who they are don’t we.
