Independent Group Leader Cllr Stuart Mann has broken his silence following Monday’s controversial debate over councillor allowances – insisting his call for a freeze was about leadership, restraint and solidarity with residents, rather than attacking fellow councillors.
Cllr Mann, who represents Burtonwood and Winwick, brought a motion to Warrington Borough Council’s Full Council calling for further increases in councillors’ allowances to be suspended while the authority deals with its unprecedented financial pressures.
The motion was defeated.
Warrington is currently taking forward a £51.2m savings programme, on top of around £39m of previously identified savings, against a reported medium-term financial gap of around £179m.
But in a deeply personal statement following the debate, Cllr Mann has revealed that he has personally refused increases to his basic allowance since being elected in May 2024.
He said: “When I was elected in May 2024, I made the decision not to take any subsequent increases to my basic councillor allowance.”
He said he continues to receive the £8,784.96 basic allowance that applied when he was elected, despite the current basic allowance being £10,916.04.
He also paid tribute to fellow Burtonwood and Winwick councillor Kevin Burgess, who he said had previously taken the same decision to freeze his allowance.
“I respect that decision and think it is important to recognise when councillors take that approach.”
Cllr Mann was particularly keen to stress that his motion was not an attack on colleagues or a demand that councillors should work without being paid.
His argument was much simpler.
“My motion on Monday was never about criticising what individual councillors currently receive.”
*“It wasn’t asking anyone to give anything back, and it wasn’t saying councillors shouldn’t receive an allowance.”
“It was simply asking us to agree that what we receive now is enough for now.”
His proposal was that there should be no further increases until Warrington is on a better financial footing.
I strongly believed in the principle behind that motion when I proposed it, and I still do.”
The council’s existing scheme provides for annual increases in basic and special responsibility allowances linked to the NJC staff award, with those arrangements currently extending to May 2028.
Cllr Mann also explained why the issue of allowances has become particularly personal for him.
As Leader of the Independent Group, he receives an additional allowance for the role – but says he donates it to local community groups and good causes, particularly dementia and Alzheimer’s charities.
The reason is deeply personal.
“I lost my dad to vascular dementia shortly after I was elected.”
He said the creation of the Forget Me Not cafés in Burtonwood and Winwick, run by Laura and Angie, was his way of trying to create something positive from his father’s legacy.
“Seeing what they’ve become and the support they give local families means far more to me than any allowance ever could.”
Cllr Mann said he has taken exactly the same approach to his role as Chair of Croft Parish Council.
From the moment he became chairman, he decided he would not personally take the chairman’s allowance.
Instead, he said he wanted the money to be used directly within the parish – including for Remembrance wreaths, the Christmas meal for parish councillors and support staff, and potentially new benches for the village.
He admitted that he normally does not talk publicly about such decisions.
“I don’t normally talk about the individual groups, causes or things I’ve helped.”
“They know, they’ve said thank you, and that’s enough for me.”
Despite the strength of feeling surrounding Monday’s debate, Cllr Mann said he would not continue a political argument over the outcome.
“I also utterly respect the democratic process. The motion didn’t pass.”
“On this occasion, I’m not going to get into a back-and-forth debate about it.”
“I’ve explained my position, Council made its decision, and we move on.”
His comments come as the council faces some of the most severe financial pressures in its history, with major savings affecting services, staffing and communities.
But for Cllr Mann, the issue was ultimately about leadership and example, rather than the amount of money involved.
“If we are asking residents, employees, service users and communities to accept extremely difficult decisions in order to put this council back onto a sustainable footing, I believe elected members should be prepared to demonstrate restraint too.”
Cllr Mann ended his statement by making clear that the allowances row would not distract him from his work as a councillor.
He said he would be attending Development Management Committee tonight (Thursday) to speak on behalf of Croft Parish Council, while continuing to represent residents in Burtonwood, Winwick and Croft.
“My focus remains where it should be, on the communities of Burtonwood and Winwick and Croft and ultimately on the future of our great town.”
And he thanked residents who had contacted him following Monday’s meeting.
“Thank you to everyone who has messaged me following full council on Monday. I really appreciate it.”
Cllr Mann is the elected Independent councillor for Burtonwood and Winwick and Leader of Warrington’s Independent Group.
