Angry Athlone councillor slams expenses splurge

An Athlone town councillor has voiced his anger at the level of expenses and payments being made to some public representatives in local authorities across the country, including in Westmeath. Cllr Austin Berry, who claims no expenses, said he was disgusted by the figures which showed that county and city councillors received more than €83m in earnings over the past three years. 'I don"t claim expenses at all. When I heard the figures on the radio on Monday I got a feel of instant disgust about the amounts some councillors are making,' said Cllr Austin Berry. Cllr Berry, who is a town councillor, receives the basic town councillor wage of €195 per fortnight, or some €5,000 per year, which he uses to make phone calls and correspond with the people he represents. He said he 'wouldn"t give a damn' if this payment was stopped tomorrow, 'I"d still represent the people, I"m not bothered by money'. 'It"s up to the general public to accept councillors" explanations as to why they"ve made so much,' he said. However, he added that the huge salaries of TDs and Ministers should be of much greater concern to people. His comments come after the Irish Independent published figures for Westmeath County Council and other county councils across the country. According to the figures, the seven Westmeath County Councillors in the Athlone area received almost €200,000 in wages, allowances and expenses during 2007. Moate-based Fianna Fáil Councillor Tom Allen received €28,949, the highest claimed in the Athlone area in 2007. while Cllr Kevin 'Boxer' Moran earned the least out of the Athlone representatives with €24,923. The basic wage or 'representative payment' for a county councillor is €16,000 which is subject to PAYE and PRSI. Councillors also get an annual allowance to cover expenses for attending meetings, as well as postage and phone bills. This payment is tax free and can range from €5,000 to €20,000. But Cllr Allen defended the earnings. 'I certainly think we work very hard, we make ourselves available seven days a week. It may be treated as a part-time job by the State but the phone never stops ringing, people stop you on the way to mass, outside a shop, everywhere.' He said that taking into account the travel and communication expenses and the hours put in by the councillors, the annual salary would probably break down to a minimum wage payment. 'We"re dealing with problems every day, from health to roads to planning. People come to you about so many things and you have to try and help them, even if it isn"t a council problem,' he added. Cllr John Dolan received €10,334 although he was co-opted into the council mid-way through the year in July, after Nicky McFadden was elected to the Senate. Fine Gael"s Mark Cooney earned €27,069 and Joe Whelan received €25,935, while Fianna Fáil"s Frankie Keena and Kieran Molloy received €28,218 and €27,681 respectively. The highest Westmeath earner overall was Fine Gael Cllr Joe Flanagan with €58,975. However, he was Cathaoirleach for much of 2007 and therefore received extra expenses and allowances. Altogether, the 23 councillors in Westmeath earned a total of €720,026 in 2007, an average of €31,305 per councillor. Cllr "Boxer" Moran, Cllr Molloy and Cllr Cooney are also Athlone Town Councillors and so would have received extra payments due this role. The figures relate to the years the expenses were claimed - and not the years in which the expenses were accrued. In some cases, expense figures for some councillors may include more than one year"s expenses.