Press Release 10 June 2011

Conservative Group

Conservative Leader and Communities Minister united in call for council to scrap Union Convenors on the rates.

Following Communities Minister Bob Neill’s acknowledgement of public concern regarding councils paying union stewards from council funds, Councillor Glen Miller, Leader of the Conservative Group on Bradford Council said, “I met with the Minister for the first time this last week and I am pleased that he has acknowledged public concern regarding union stewards funded by public money and also that he has said that there is concern at parliamentary level.

We have been saying for a long time now that Bradford Council should not be spending £300,000 per year paying for the wages and offices of trade union staff whilst cutting services and making our own staff redundant. Union members’ subscriptions should be used to pay union employees.

When you add the £200,000 plus that Education Bradford, which will be returning to the council this year, spends on paying union employee wages and office costs, you have over half a million pounds of Bradford resident’s money being spent on union staff costs”.

Councillor Miller concluded, “I am wholly in agreement with the Minister’s view that council’s have a duty to ensure value for money for the taxpayer and I call upon the Labour leadership to respond to the Minister’s call for the merits of union officials and office facilities funded by councils to be urgently reviewed”.

Notes to editors

For any further information, please contact Pete Young, Policy Research Officer to the Conservative Group, CBMDC, on 01274 432069 or at peter.young@bradford.gov.uk