Increase in allowances for the vice presidents and delegated advisors of Grand Villeneuvois: Not a good sign

Essential
At the last council meeting of Grand Villeneuvois, on Thursday, April 23, the elected officials adopted the new allowances for the executive of the conurbation. They have been increased for vice-presidents and delegated councillors, which has drawn a reaction from the opposition.

Newly increased allowances within the conurbation, a divisive vote. During the last session of the council, on Thursday, April 23, the elected officials of the Grand Villeneuvois Community of Agglomeration (CAGV) adopted the allowances for the president, vice-presidents, and delegated councillors.

The president will receive €2,757.76 gross monthly, vice-presidents €1,109.84 gross monthly, and community council delegated councillors €452.16 gross monthly. The total amount of allowances amounts to €19,693 gross per month. A decision to increase the remuneration of vice-presidents and delegated councillors that did not receive unanimous approval. The vote ended with seven votes against and three abstentions.

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“There has been a development that I personally wanted. I know how important the work of vice-presidents is, as well as the responsibilities inherent in their roles, including numerous trips. So, I wanted to increase them a bit. The same goes for the delegated councillors: we go up to 11% for the rate of the function allowance granted to the eight councillors. However, to avoid a too significant increase, we reduced the number of delegated councillors from twelve to eight. Thus, we respect the budget.”

“I don’t think this is a good signal to send to our citizens from the very first evening”

In the opposition, several elected officials criticized an unwelcome signal at the beginning of the term. “At the beginning of the session, especially in your speech, you expressed the difficulties we will certainly have to face, from a budgetary point of view. Personally, I don’t think this is a good signal to send to our citizens from the very first evening, to increase the allowances of our vice-presidents and delegated councillors. A little over €100 per month for the delegated councillors. This represents an annual cost of €50 to €57,000. If you multiply over six years, it immediately adds up to significant amounts, which could fund something else. We will therefore vote against this increase because we believe it is not the right time to do it, especially at the beginning of the term,” criticized Thomas Bouyssonnie, opposition municipal councilor in Villeneuve-sur-Lot.

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“The increase is not €50,000 but €30,000 per year,” responded Guillaume Lepers. “Indeed, the allowances were, in my opinion, very low for those who also have deputy functions in the locality. We are talking about an increase of €300, going from €700 gross to €1,100 gross for a vice-president, and €452 gross for a delegated councillor. I can assure you that, compared to other allowances, especially departmental ones, this is not much considering the commitment and travel expenses associated with these functions.”

“For the work done and responsibilities assumed, it is fully justified”

Geoffroy Gary, another opponent of Guillaume Lepers on the Villeneuvois municipal council, also spoke out against the new allowances for vice-presidents and delegated councillors of the CAGV. “I am surprised because I would have liked you to follow the example of one of your vice-presidents, Youcef Cherchari (mayor of Casseneuil), who applied rates of 47.44% for the presidency, 15.82% for the vice-presidents, and 6% for the delegations. Without wanting to engage in a battle of figures, over an entire term, this represents over €500,000. These sums could be useful to certain local businesses that need help to invest. We will monitor how you proceed to support these SMEs, since you have a mandatory economic competence.”

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The figures presented by his opponent were flatly rejected by the new president of the locality: “We are around €380,000, about €38,000 per year. That’s half of what you claim. A good decision is a decision that takes responsibility. I decided, as president, not to ask for more. Some expected it, but I believe it is not appropriate. On the other hand, we reduced the number of delegated councillors, which allows us to slightly increase their allowances. As a reminder, €1,100 gross for a vice-president is about €728 to €800 net. For the work done and responsibilities assumed, it is fully justified.”