Councillors vote to review super but keep allowances spending secret
Brisbane City councillors have voted to review their generous 20 per cent superannuation entitlements but stopped short of revealing how they use their massive expense allowances – one of which is a whopping $100,000 – to voters.
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COUNCILLORS have voted to review their generous 20 per cent superannuation entitlements, but turned down a chance to make public how they spend their whopping five or six-figure allowances.
In a late-night sitting in City Hall, Brisbane City councillors voted for the Independent Councillor Remuneration Tribunal to reconvene for a special sitting to review their super entitlements.
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But quashed an amendment pushed by independent councillor Nicole Johnston to recommend allowance spending disclosure also be examined by the Tribunal.
Under current entitlements, senior councillors receive $20,320 of expense-of-office paid directly into their bank accounts.
Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner commands an even larger allowance of almost $100,000.
The Tribunal reviews the amount of these allowances every five years, but councillors are currently not required to reveal how they are spent.
Instead the allowances are paid directly into councillors bank accounts and are being treated like additional taxable income for them to spend on whatever they want.
Cr Johnston on Tuesday night proposed asking the Tribunal to examine whether councillors should have to account for the spending of the allowances through public disclosure.
Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner suggested the amendment be changed, so the tribunal would only “consider” reviewing allowances.
“This is directing the tribunal to do something,” Cr Schrinner said of the original amendment.
His amendment was rejected by Cr Johnston.
The Labor opposition, who voted for the review for allowances, said the amendment’s rejection failed the pub test.
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