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FREE DINNERS FOR PRIMARY SCHOOL KIDS
Top councillors could face pay cuts to fund ambitious meals plan
HIGH earners at the Town Hall could be forced to take pay cuts to help fund free meals for every primary school child in Islington.
Under-siege Liberal Democrat council leader Councillor James Kempton is fiercely defending his £68,500 a year salary, but rivals have told him it must come down so that bold spending plans can go ahead during the economic gloom.
Top of a proposed spending list for the Labour opposition is a national first: Free school meals for every child under 11, regardless of their family’s financial circumstances.
Cllr Kempton claimed that the £3million project would be resisted by taxpayers who would not want to buy lunch for children from wealthy families.
But supporters of the move said it would give parents the perfect boost in hard times and they are pushing hard to make savings from councillors’ allowances. Salary cuts could save around £200,000.
With the Liberal Democrats no longer guaranteed to win every vote in the council chamber, the budget row has set up one of the most fractious showdowns between local politicians in recent years. > click here for full story |
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