Activities of Shropshire councillors thrown open to public scrutiny for the first time

Full details of councillors’ attendance at conferences, seminars and training events has been published today (Friday 9 September), as Shropshire Council pushes forward with its commitment to make as much information as possible of its activities and spending open to the public.

The council has a policy that councillors should only go to events outside the county when there is likely to be a clear benefit to Shropshire residents from their attendance, such as an understanding of new Government initiatives or an opportunity to influence policy on behalf of the county.

21 councillors, across all political parties, attended conferences or training events in the past year and the full list, showing the cost of the event, of travel, and in some cases of accommodation costs, can be seen on the council’s website by clicking this link.  This will be updated every month in the future.

Council leader, Keith Barrow, said he was pleased to publish the list as the council continued to be more open and transparent about its use of public money.

Lists of the attendance of councillors at official council meetings within Shropshire are also now being published on the council’s website.

Keith said: “It can be very important that we attend key events nationally, so that we can lobby for a fairer deal for Shropshire residents, or when we need to get a firm grasp of the latest Government policy.  However, quite frankly in the current financial climate, I’m of the opinion that there has to be a very good reason for councillors to go.  Local people can check whether their councillor is working hard to represent them and their community.

“I want to publish this list as part of our continuing commitment to being open and honest with the public.  We are now publishing a huge amount of financial information every month, including senior staff salaries and expenses, and we publish councillors’ allowances and expenses, as we believe it’s important that councils are as transparent as possible about whether what they spend people’s hard-earned council tax on is real value for money. This has to be relevant to their particular responsibilities and give real benefit for local people, as well as being approved in advance.”