AN ATTEMPT to increase the already record number of councillors receiving special payments was narrowly beaten off at an angry council meeting.

Forty three of the Redbridge’s 63 councillors are currently entitled to receive payments on top of their basic £9,895 allowance, the second highest proportion in London.

The number has been described as ‘wrong in principle’ by a Government watchdog and, after two years of deliberation, the council was due to vote last week on reducing the figure to 34, but at the last moment council leaders attempted to increase the number to 46.

The move was defended as a way of rewarding the vice-chairmen of various council committees but Labour group leader Elaine Norman claimed that the move was an attempt on the part of council leader Alan Weinberg to increase his powers of patronage.

Roding ward councillor Ian Bond said: “How on earth are we supposed to take this amendment seriously? This council has been criticised for the number of special responsibility allowances and their response is to increase the number by three. How does this look outside this chamber? This is an unacceptable way to handle such a sensitive subject as this.”

Bridge ward councillor John Fairley-Churchill pointed out that most special responsibility allowances are below those recommended by London Council’s Independent Remuneration Panel and council leader Alan Weinberg said: “Its to do with recognising additional responsibility. I do believe that vice chairs deserve a special responsibility allowance and that’s why part of the amendment is there. There is no move to increase the amount of the alllowances.”

Councillors eventually defeated the amendment by 29 votes to 27 and approved the reduction in the number of councillors receiving the allowances to 34.