THE INCOMING LORD Mayor of Cork has said that the €100,000 salary that comes with the job “reflects the importance of the role”.
Labour’s Catherine Clancy was reacting to Sinn Féin criticism of the role’s salary which, combined with expenses, entertainment budgets and use of a driver and car, cost the city over €200,000 last year. The role carries an €83,000 salary, but councillors receive their statutory €16,000 paid allowance on top of that. There is an €80,000 budget for entertainment.
The €83,000 salary is more than the €70,000 paid to the Lord Mayor of Dublin and twice the rate paid to the Lord Mayor of Belfast, who makes €55,000. This is despite both Dublin City and Belfast being more than twice the size of Cork City.
Ms Clancy, who is a sister of Labour TD Ciaran Lynch and represents the Blackpool area of Cork’s North Inner City, said that the salary was set prior to her election and she wouldn’t be seeking a pay cut. Ms Clancy told TheJournal.ie that the rate is linked to the pay of a TD – despite being €18,000 more than a Dáil deputy’s basic wage.
The rate is linked to the pay of TDs and is set by legislation. I wouldn’t be in favour of cutting the rate
The outgoing Lord Mayor of Cork John Buttimer (FG) took a voluntary pay cut of 10 per cent last August,
The Lord Mayor of Cork costs each of the citizens of Cork City about 92 cent per person, compared to the 13 cent the Lord Mayor of Dublin costs each of their 506,000 constituents, while the President of the United States costs each citizen 9 one-thousandths of a cent.
Sinn Féin councillor Chris O’Leary, who represents the Mahon area of Cork, says that the pay has been climbing in recent years.
“It is not a one-off here. The salary of the Lord Mayor has been climbing year-on-year for the last few years.
“We have put forward motions for the last number of years looking to cut the salary, but they have not been carried.
We have 550 houses boarded up in Cork City, we have people sick in council houses who can’t get double glazed windows because the council can’t afford it. We can’t afford to carry such a salary.
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