Councillors’ salary and expenses bill tops £450k

The SIC’s St Ringan’s council chambers. Photo: SIC.

Councillors’ salary and expenses costs climbed five per cent to reach more than £450,000 last year.

The SIC members’ remuneration report for 2021/22, published today (Tuesday), shows the total came to £451,137 – up from £429,756 the previous year.

Councillors’ salaries, which are set nationally, made up the bulk of the total costs at £445,454.

The top salary of £31,009 was paid to former leader Steven Coutts, while outgoing convener Malcolm Bell earned £23,256.

The remuneration bill is set to increase further this year following the latest pay award.

New leader Emma Macdonald will be paid £32,622 while the salary for new convener, Andrea Manson, is set at £24,467. Remuneration for committee chairpersons and regular members has also increased.

Last year’s expenses bill, at £5,683, was more than double the 2020/21 figure – however it was still considerably below pre-pandemic totals, which regularly exceed £50,000.

Mr Coutts’ expenses bill was the highest at £1,965.

Members’ attendance figures, also published today, show a dip.

Overall attendance was 86.5 per cent last year compared to 97.3 per cent in 2020/21. 

While 12 councillors achieved 100 per cent attendance in 2020/21 only Shetland Central’s Ian Scott managed to make it to all of his meetings last year. 

North Isles’ councillor Ryan Thomson missed the most meetings, attending 17 out of a possible 37.

His former North Isles colleague, Alec Priest, also missed almost half of his possible meetings.