10 pages of MFRA councillors’ expense claims for car mileage, tolls, parking and taxis
10 pages of MFRA councillors’ expense claims for car mileage, tolls, parking and taxis
Below are ten A4 pages of expense claims submitted by councillors on Merseyside Fire and Rescue Authority for the 2014/15 financial year. It’s the first ten of eighty-nine pages and each thumbnail below should link to a more high-definition (and therefore readable) image for each page.
The councillors these pages are for are Cllr Lesley Rennie, Cllr Dave Hanratty, Cllr Leslie T Byrom, Cllr Robbie Ayres. The expense claims are for car mileage, parking, tolls on the M6 toll road and taxis.
The four page expense claim of Cllr Leslie T Byrom is because receipts for the M6 toll road weren’t submitted with the original claim but submitted later. The Midland Expressway Limited receipts for the M6 toll road although they look similar at first are for travel on different days (one for the 11th December 2014 and the other for the 12th December 2014).
FOA stands for Fire Officers Association, HQ is headquarters, FSMC is Fire Safety Management Committee, NW for North West, FSN for Fire Support Network and TDA for Training and Development Academy. I’ve no idea what SRB or C&N stand for. If you know, please leave a comment.
Cllr Lesley Rennie car mileage expenses September 2014 October 2014 November 2014 January 2015 thumbnailCllr Dave Hanratty expenses claim thumbnailCllr Byrom car mileage toll road December 2014 page 1 of 4 thumbnailCllr Byrom car mileage toll road December 2014 page 2 of 4 thumbnailCllr Byrom toll road receipt December 2014 page 3 of 4 thumbnailCllr Byrom toll road receipt December 2014 page 4 of 4 thumbnailCllr Byrom car mileage claim parking January 2015 thumbnailCllr Byrom car mileage claim February 2015 thumbnailCllr Ayres car mileage expenses December 2014 thumbnailCllr Ayres car mileage claim January 2015 thumbnail
Which Wirral councillor claimed £50 on taxis to and from a public meeting?
Which Wirral councillor claimed £50 on taxis to and from a public meeting?
I wrote recently to some of the councillors on Merseyside Fire and Rescue Authority expressing my concern that there were two expenses systems.
The first involved amounts where councillors had paid out expenses and claimed the money back. The totals for each councillor are published annually and you can see the list for 2014/15 on Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service’s website. This list also includes the extra £8,070 a year that each councillor on Merseyside Fire and Rescue Authority receives with some receiving more on top of this (such as the Chair receives an extra £16,140 on top of the £8,040). These amounts are in addition to what they each receive for being a councillor from their own councils.
However there is a “secret” expenses system for councillors where Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service is invoiced directly. These amounts are not in the list above. My letter expressed the view that such expenses should be included and the reply I received is below.
Merseyside Fire and Rescue service letter about councillor expenses page 1 of 2Merseyside Fire and Rescue service letter about councillor expenses page 2 of 2
So I recently went to Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service’s headquarters in Bridle Road, Bootle and inspected these records. Below are two pages of an invoice for taxi rides by councillors that because Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service are invoiced directly don’t get included in the annual published lists.
Cabfind Ltd invoice taxis for councillors page 1 of 2Cabfind Ltd invoice taxis for councillors page 2 of 2
I was astounded to find that a councillor from Wirral (Cllr Steve Niblock who is one of the three Labour councillors from Wirral on the Merseyside Fire and Rescue Authority) had taken a taxi from his home to the Fire and Rescue Service headquarters for a public meeting that cost £25 and then a taxi back costing a further £25 (total £50)!
The letter from Janet Henshaw stated “It was not possible to show travel & event bookings made directly by MFRA [Merseyside Fire and Rescue Authority] (as opposed to members paying and then claiming back their allowances) due to the fact that this Authority uses an electronic software system to make each booking at the cheapest possible price for both members and officers.” and “MFRA [Merseyside Fire and Rescue Authority] does not use any taxi firms“.
Cabfind Limited isn’t a taxi firm, but based on this statement you’d expect that taxi journeys made by councillors using Cabfind Limited would be the same or cheaper than paying for it themselves?
Below is an expense claim submitted by Cllr Steve Niblock for a journey when he has paid the taxi fare himself and claimed it back. The journey to the Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service headquarters is from and to the same address as the Cabfind Limited invoice above.
Councillor Steve Niblock expenses claim taxi journeys
The taxi journeys above were for £18.60 and £20.00. This is for exactly the same journey that when booked through Cabfind Limited (which Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service claim is “at the cheapest possible price”) was £25.00 and £25.00.
Had Councillor Steve Niblock walked to the nearest train station (Bebington) and got the train to the nearest train station to Merseyside Fire and Rescue headquarters (Aintree) the fare would’ve been only £3.85 each way (total £7.70). However there is nothing in the Merseyside Fire and Rescue Authority expense rules that states that councillors claiming back travel expenses have to travel by the cheapest route possible (such as by public transport).
Councillor Steve Niblock recently voted to close Upton and West Kirby fire stations and is part of the ruling Labour Group on Merseyside Fire and Rescue Authority that claims that the Conservative government doesn’t give the Merseyside Fire and Rescue Authority enough money.
Frank Field’s election campaign spent £254.40 on balloon gas but what else was money spent on?
Frank Field’s election campaign spent £254.40 on balloon gas but what else was money spent on?
Today I went to Wallasey Town Hall and inspected several candidates’ election returns for the 2015 elections. Below are the pages from Frank Field’s campaign.
Unlike the local election where there is just one period that expenditure and donations need to be declared for, in a General Election there are two periods called “campaigns”. The “long campaign” is from 19th December 2014 to the date the person became a candidate. The “short campaign” is from the date they became a candidate to polling day.
Frank Fields’ campaign spent £31 during the long campaign (£19 on a mobile phone and £12 with WordPress for a website). However during the long campaign he received a £1,000 donation from USDAW (the Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers).
During the short campaign £7,651.25 was spent (£1,200 on an advertising wraparound in the Wirral Globe, £4,794.35 on leaflets, £35.50 on taxis, £500 on the deposit, £254.40 on balloon gas, £437 on a market stall, £400 on office space in the Lauries Centre, £30 on topping up the mobile phone (presumably the one bought during the long campaign).
In the short campaign, the Birkenhead Constituency Labour Party donated £6,675.75, the Communication Worker’s Union £90 plus there were also two donations from individuals for £100 and £250. Updated 22nd June 2015: Wirral Council has been in touch and said that the names of the individual donors being blacked out was a mistake. £100 was donated by Ken Tasker and the £250 by Abhii Mantgani. These total £7,115.75.
The difference between expenditure and donations for this period was £535.50 was met by the candidate.
However I will point out that in the short campaign there was still £969 unspent from the donation from USDAW.
The documents submitted as his election expenses returns for the short and long period are below.
Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 1Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 2Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 3Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 4Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 5Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 6Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 7Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 8Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 9Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 10Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 11Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 12Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 13Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 14Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 15Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 16Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 17Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 18Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 19Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 20Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 21Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 22Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 22Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 23Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 24Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 25Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 26Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 27Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 28Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 29Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 30Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 31Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 32Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 33Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 34Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 35Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 36Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 37Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return short campaign page 38Birkenhead General Election 2015 Declaration election expenses Frank FieldBirkenhead General Election 2015 declaration election expenses George DaviesBirkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return long campaign page 39Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return long campaign page 40Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return long campaign page 41Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return long campaign page 42Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return long campaign page 43Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return long campaign page 44Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return long campaign page 45Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return long campaign page 46Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return long campaign page 47Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return long campaign page 48Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return long campaign page 49Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return long campaign page 50Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return long campaign page 51Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return long campaign page 52Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return long campaign page 53Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return long campaign page 54Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return long campaign page 55Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return long campaign page 56Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return long campaign page 57Birkenhead General Election 2015 election expenses return long campaign page 58
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Wirral Council councillors agree to change of polling station and to consultation on medical requirements for taxi drivers
Wirral Council councillors agree to change of polling station and to consultation on medical requirements for taxi drivers
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Licensing, Health and Safety and General Purposes Committee Wirral Council 19th November 2014 L to R Cllr Steve Williams, Cllr Geoffrey Watt, Cllr Andrew Hodson and Anne Beauchamp
Wirral Council’s Licensing, Health and Safety and General Purposes Committee met on the 19th November 2014. The agenda and reports for this meeting can be read on Wirral Council’s website.
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3. POLLING STATIONS: FURTHER UPDATE 0:43
Cllr Geoffrey Watt then declared a non pecuniary interest in item 3 (Polling Station – Further Update) as it refers to polling district QC which is in West Kirby & Thurstaston ward (which he represents on Wirral Council). Get Propecia free trial on http://www.trendingdownward.com/propecia-finasteride/ and try for hair loss treatment.
Kate Robinson explained that this report was about polling stations for polling district YC (Moreton West and Saughall Massie) and QC (West Kirby & Thurstaston).
The (Acting) Returning Officer’s report recommended the following polling stations:
YC (Moreton West and Saughall Massie): Foxfield School (Douglas Drive)
QC (West Kirby & Thurstaston): St Bridget’s Church of England Primary School (St Bridget’s Lane)
Councillors discussed the (Acting) Returning Officer’s recommendations.
The decisions as to where polling stations would be for the May 2015 elections were made by councillors on the Licensing, Health and Safety and General Purposes Committee as follows:
YC (Moreton West and Saughall Massie): Foxfield School (Douglas Drive)
There was a petition of “more than twenty-five names” about the decision for polling district QC. However Cllr Geoffrey Watt said that the petition had unfortunately been lost. There was also a letter from the headteacher of St Bridget’s Church of England Primary School which he had circulated to those on the committee which was about the polling station for district QC.
Councillors discussed whether the polling station for district QC should be St Bridget’s Church of England Primary School (St Bridget’s Lane) or St Bridget’s Centre (St Bridget’s Lane).
QC (West Kirby & Thurstaston): St Bridget’s Centre (St Bridget’s Lane) proposed by Cllr Geoffrey Watt, seconded by Cllr Andrew Hodson. This proposal was agreed.
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Kate Robinson advised the Committee that Wirral Council would be writing to 2,930 postal voters and 6 proxy voters during December to ask for refreshed signatures. If no response was received, a reminder would be sent. If no response was received to the reminder then the postal vote would be cancelled. She said that councillors may get inquiries about this and that they should encourage electors to respond.
Councillors discussed many interrelated issues to do with postal votes, the electoral roll, application forms, One Stop Shops, surgeries, internet access and local free newspapers.
Kate Robinson updated councillors on the results of the changes to individual registration. 91% of those on the voting lists had been matched with Department for Work and Pension data. People who had been automatically matched didn’t need to re-register. The plan was to send polling cards out in March [2015], but before that to do an audit of the electoral register in January with a mini canvass. Every household that was now registered would be sent a letter asking if the information held was right or wrong. This would save Wirral Council staff being “inundated with changes”.
Councillors Hodson and Sullivan asked her questions or commented on that item, the purpose of which was to keep councillors on the Committee updated on Electoral Services activities).
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Margaret O’Donnell introduced this item and the reasons for the proposed consultation.
Councillors suggested changes to what was consulted on. One councillor asked for legal advice on whether the current requirements should be a consultation option.
With the changes made to what was being consulted on councillors agreed the changes.
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A councillor raised the issue of taxi drivers not adhering to the dress code. Margaret O’Donnell suggested that the dress code requirements could be sent out with the consultation on medical requirements for hackney carriage and private hire drivers.
The Chair raised the issue of deregulation. Margaret O’Donnell said she could provide an update, however the Bill had not yet received Royal Assent. She explained that one of the proposed changes after lobbying by the Local Government Association had been removed from the Bill.
A councillor said that he didn’t understand.
The Chair referred to emails. Margaret O’Donnell referred to a piece of work by the Law Commission which was unlikely to have effect this side of the May 2015 election.
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Licensing, Health and Safety and General Purposes Committee (Wirral Council) 25th September 2012
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