Monday, July 26, 2010

Provincial Local Gov't Minister to review City of Port Coquitlam Council pay hike

In what I can recall as a first in muncipal/provincial relations...

The Minister of Rural/Community Development (Hon. Ben Stewart) has publicly stated that he plans to personally review with his staff the pay hikes proposed for both the Mayor and Councillors' in the City of Port Coquitlam to see if they are reasonable...

For the record, the proposed pay hikes for Port Coquitlam Council are:

Mayor Greg Moore - From $67,277 to $85, 418 - a 27% raise
6 City Councillors - From $22,257 to $31,654 - a 42% raise

If the Minister orders a roll-back, then I think it'll give both muncipal councils' & regional district boards' reason to pause and ask themselves:

If we approve these pay hikes, will the Provincial Local Government Minister force us to roll them back....?

The Minister should also be monitoring the expenses paid to local politicians each year and to ensure that they are reasonable and not out of control

See the Vancouver Sun article here

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