The Local Authorities (Allowances for Members of County and County Borough Councils and National Park Authorities) (Wales) Regulations 2002

Special responsibility allowances

8.—(1) Subject to paragraph (2), a scheme made under this Part may provide, in accordance with paragraph (3), for the payment for each year to which the scheme relates of an allowance (“special responsibility allowance”) to such members of the authority who are councillors as have such special responsibilities in relation to the authority as are specified in the scheme and are within one or more of the following categories—

(a) the elected mayor of an authority operating executive arrangements which take the form of a mayor and cabinet executive;

(b) the leader of an authority operating executive arrangements which take the form of a leader and cabinet executive and the elected mayor of an authority operating executive arrangements which take the form of a mayor and council manager executive;

(c) members of the cabinet of an authority operating executive arrangements which take the form of a leader and cabinet executive and the chair of the board of an authority operating alternative arrangements;

(d) members of the board of an authority operating alternative arrangements, chairs of overview and scrutiny committees and planning committees, leaders of the largest opposition group in an authority and chairs of National Park authorities;

(e) vice-chairs of overview and scrutiny committees, vice-chairs of planning committees, chairs of other committees, members of the cabinet of an authority operating executive arrangements which take the form of a mayor and cabinet executive and vice-chairs of National Park authorities;

(f) vice-chairs of committees other than overview and scrutiny committees and planning committees, leaders of any other political group in an authority and chairs and vice chairs of National Park authority committees; and

(g) such other activities in relation to the discharge of the authority’s functions as have been approved in writing by the National Assembly for Wales.

(2) (a) A special responsibility allowance may not be paid to more than fifty per cent of the members of the authority (calculated using the total number of seats on the authority and by rounding up the number of members to the next whole number when in calculating the percentage the number is not a whole number).

(b) A special responsibility allowance (“the deputy’s allowance”) payable to a deputy leader of a cabinet in the case of executive arrangements and the vice chair of the board in the case of the alternative arrangements may include a sum equal to no more than ten per cent of the special responsibility allowance payable to a member of the cabinet of an authority operating executive arrangements which take the form of a leader and cabinet executive or a member of a board of an authority operating alternative arrangements (excluding a leader of an authority operating executive arrangements or a chair of board of a council operating alternative arrangements) provided that the deputy’s payment is made to not more than one person.

(3) Any scheme making such provision as is mentioned in paragraph (1) shall provide that—

(a) where a member does not have throughout a year any such special responsibilities as entitle a member to a special responsibility allowance, that member’s entitlement shall be to payment of such proportion of that allowance as the number of days during which that member has such special responsibilities bears to the number of days in that year; and

(b) where a scheme is amended as mentioned in paragraph (2) of regulation 6 and a member does not have throughout the whole of any period mentioned in sub-paragraph (a)(i) or (ii) of that paragraph any such special responsibilities as entitle a member to a special responsibility allowance, that member’s entitlement shall be to payment of such proportion of the allowance referable to each such period as the number of days in that period during which that member has such special responsibilities bears to the number of days in the period.