A Reform-run council has been asked to explain why it increased the town mayor’s allowance by 600%.
Scarborough Town Council has made headlines in recent days over its decision to give Reform UK mayor Thomas Murray a £3,500 allowance – up from £500 – in the authority’s annual budget.
This comes after the council had committed to cautious spending, the BBC reports.
READ NEXT: Despite promises, Reform now say council tax cuts ‘not going to happen’
Independent opposition councillor Rich Maw said he had “serious concerns” over the increase, but Reform members of the council have defended the increase, arguing the mayor “should not be left out of pocket.”
Councillors said there had been an increase in mayoral duties and savings had already been made in other areas, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.
It reports that a group of charter trustees had previously been responsible for maintaining civic traditions.
Under these councillors – who represented Scarborough’s unparished areas on North Yorkshire Council – the mayor received £500 and the deputy mayor £100.
Maw said he “respectfully asked” in a full council meeting for “justification” in increasing the allowance.
Murray said the 600% increase was based on how many engagements he could attend in a given year and how much each event had cost him in the unpaid role of mayor.
He claimed the real figure was much higher than £3,500, but that he’d set the allowance at this figure “because I’m aware that this is public money.”
Over the weekend, Reform leader Nigel Farage was asked about the story on the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme.
Farage said he had “no idea” about the situation.