A call has been made to remunerate councillors who serve on the board that scrutinises West Midlands Police, as they currently receive no financial allowance for their work. The demand came from Coventry councillor Jackie Gardiner, who argued that paying members of the West Midlands Police and Crime Panel would be fair given the substantial time they dedicate. She also stated that remuneration would encourage younger councillors to take up the role in the future.
At a meeting on Monday, July 27, newly elected panel chair Councillor Anthony Ward acknowledged the issue and promised to investigate it. The panel's annual running budget is only £67,000, and all current members serve without pay.
Time Commitment and Fairness
Councillor Gardiner said: 'Whilst I appreciate there is only £67,000 allocated for the running of this board and that all the members who sit on this board currently receive no remuneration for the time they give up. It's a very considerable time allocation that's being given and I would just like to point out this is perhaps something that needs to be looked at in the future.' She questioned how reasonable it is to expect councillors to give a 'very, very substantial amount of their time' on top of their other council duties without being paid.
'It's an important panel to be part of but it's also important you remunerate members for the work they put in,' she added.
Opposing Views
Fellow panel member Ken Hawkins disagreed. 'One of the things about the Police and Crime Panel when it was brought in was a change from the old police authority that was burdensome in relation to the taxpayer. We all get allowances from our own authorities and we volunteer for this role. We're here to serve,' he said.
But Councillor Gardiner countered: 'I appreciate what Councillor Hawkins has said but if you're wanting to have younger members serving on panels then we need to remember they need to be able to have a living and be remunerated. It can't simply be a panel for those who are retired and living by independent means.'
Diversity and Representation
Gardiner stressed the importance of enabling wider public participation. 'It's important for the general public to be able to take part in these and these are very substantial amounts of time people are being asked to put in. Each of these meetings last three or four hours and then there are all the hours of preparation that needs to be put in to it. This is a very large time commitment on top of what people are paid for by their councils to do their own council work.'
She noted that not all councillors choose to sit on these boards, and that it requires significant dedication. 'Not all councillors come and sit on these boards and yet it does require a great deal of commitment to service to come and do it.'
Chair to Investigate
Councillor Ward said: 'I am aware that this has been in place for a considerable amount of time. I will look into it because the workload councillors conduct might also have changed considerably compared to when this was originally made and set in policy.' He added, 'I am also aware there are many other combined authority panels where there is no financial allowance. I need to look at that, see where we fit in and what I don't want to do is for us to be the only panel when there is a set procedure on how it currently goes.'
The panel is responsible for holding the West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner to account. Currently, three candidates are vying for the top job at West Midlands Police, highlighting the importance of robust scrutiny.
