A request under the Freedom of Information Act has revealed the total cost of the pay scandal to Caerphilly County Borough Council is £4.5 million.
The figure is £2m more than the £2.5m previously quoted by the local authority and now takes into account the pay increases secretly awarded to 20 senior council bosses.
Caerphilly County Borough Council has maintained the extra cost burden to the authority is £2.5m, which includes legal fees and the cost of paying three bosses on paid leave.
Council chief executive Anthony O’Sullivan, his deputy Nigel Barnett and head of legal Daniel Perkins were all suspended on full pay in 2013 in the wake of a report from the Wales Audit Office into the secret pay rises.
The WAO found the decision to award the pay rises was unlawful because Mr O’Sullivan had himself written a report recommending the pay rises and that he was present at a secret meeting that agreed them.
The meeting itself, attended by five councillors, was also unlawfully held because it was not publicised beforehand.
Mr O’Sullivan saw his salary increased from £132,000 to £158,000, although after details of the increase were leaked to the media, the rise was reduced to £5,000.
The WAO report prompted a police investigation and Mr O’Sullivan, Mr Perkins and Mr Barnett were arrested and charged with misconduct in a public office. All charges were later dropped over a lack of evidence, but the three remain on special paid leave while disciplinary proceedings are carried out.
The freedom of information request was made by the opposition Plaid Cymru group on the council, which has attacked the ruling Labour group about the ongoing saga.
Labour has hit back claiming that Plaid is putting out a “stream of fake news”.
Plaid Cymru group leader Colin Mann said: “We are talking about at least £4.5m and rising – £25 for every resident of the borough or £57 for each household.
“The council could have built two new schools, or employed many more teachers. Alternatively we could have resurfaced around 50 miles of roads or filled tens of thousands of potholes.
“More enforcement staff could have been employed to tackle one of the scourges of today, presided over by Labour, the huge problem of dog mess and litter. We could have had more Community Safety Wardens.”
The new figure of £4.5m includes the £1.4m extra that 20 top bosses will earn by April 2017 as a result of the secret 2012 pay rise deal.
In addition, the council has spent £570,827 over the same period on paying two interim chief executives.
Plaid said the final figure is likely to be even higher as pay figures are not available for other officers that have acted up following the initial suspension of the three chief officers.
The Labour group on the council has attacked Plaid Cymru for churning out “fake news”.
Labour’s deputy council leader Dave Poole said: “The cut-and-thrust of political debate is healthy, especially as we approach the local elections in May.
“But Plaid Cymru can’t be allowed to get away with claims that are distorted or just plain untrue and designed to deceive the voters.”
He said claims by Plaid that money spent on the investigation into the senior officers’ pay award was enough to build two new primary schools was nonsense.
He said: “Using Caerphilly Council’s current primary school building cost, two primary schools would cost £17m. Plaid’s claim is therefore misleading and deceitful.
“Plaid Cymru councillors voted for the senior remuneration panel that made the original pay award.
“A Plaid Cymru member of the senior remuneration panel did not vote against the pay award.
“And Plaid Cymru councillors are members of the committee investigating this issue.
“Are Plaid Cymru criticising their own councillors?”
Cllr Poole’s claim that a Plaid Cymru councillor on the remuneration panel did not vote againt the pay award has previously been disputed by the party.
An anonymous letter, sent to all Labour councillors recently, warned the party that the pay scandal would be the number one issue for Plaid Cymru and UKIP in the upcoming election and also criticised the leadership of the Labour group.
A Caerphilly County Borough Council spokesman said: “The ongoing disciplinary investigation into three senior officers has resulted in additional costs to the authority totalling £2.5million to date. It is important to note that a portion of these costs were incurred during the police investigation which lasted over two years. During this time the council was advised that it was unable to undertake its own proceedings and therefore the timescales have extended beyond what was originally anticipated.
“All appropriate steps are being taken to progress this matter as quickly as possible, but the investigation must be conducted fairly and thoroughly in accordance with an agreed statutory process.”
This whole farce is an utter disgrace and shows nothing but contempt for each and every resident of Caerphilly who must keep this in mind when voting at the forthcoming local elections, Labour must be removed and these three characters dismissed.
Absolutely right and voters should not forget that the deputy leader of the Plaid group was a member of the secret committee that voted in the massive pay rises. Cllr. Colin Mann can protest as loudly as he likes, does he really expect us to believe that the leadership of Plaid knew nothing of this secret remuneration committee to whose meetings the public were excluded?
It seems Caerphilly Council don’t like the comments which haveall been removed – what happened to free speech ?
Free speech in its true sense of being able to say whatever you wanted, so long as it was not slanderous, without worrying at all about who may be offended disappeared in Britain some time ago.
The universities are leading the charge by even telling us what terminology can be used. This is leading to a whole generation who are supposedly well educated but in reality have never had their views challenged.
You are only supposed to believe the official line and debate is stifled. There are still members of the awkward squad still around, like me, who believe in real free speech and will continue to state our views.
Likewise I am ” old school “and will continue to express my views – so much for the Council being open and transparent !
I hope that come the May elections, the public will finally see sense and despatch the current Labour administration.
Surely as Council Tax payers we have the right to question how our money is spent ! ,( or in this case, wasted ! ).
Good debate and challenge can only help to improve society – if the Big Brother attitude is going to become the norm and only comments that are favourable and what they want to hear are going to be allowed things will never improve.
We took down your comments as they were accusations without any real foundation and could be considered libellous.
Caerphilly Observer is an independent publication. Caerphilly County Borough Council has no editorial control.
It seems Caerphilly Council didn’t like all the comments which have been removed – what happened to free speech ?
“More enforcement staff and community safety wardens could have been employed ……to deal with the modern scourge of dog fouling and litter…..”
What a further waste of money that would be !
Despite these staff issuing “on the spot fines” we still have the issue of dog fouling and littering, so clearly the fines are not acting as any form of deterrent.
The system isn’t working.
The dog fouling and litter needs to be cleared sooner ,so that the council receive fewer complaints and the money that would be saved from Not employing more of these staff could be put much better use for example social care.