The mayor of Cieza, Tomás Rubio, has signed one of his first resolutions since taking office, outlining the distribution of responsibilities among the council members. Furthermore, the full council approved, in an extraordinary session this Wednesday, the new full-time and part-time dedications for council members, which have been significantly reduced.
The government councilors with exclusive dedication will only be 5 (one of them at 85 % and another at 60%), “thus complying with the first of the points included in the programmatic agreements document signed by the Popular Party and VOX to reduce political expenses in the Cieza City Council, which in this concept alone will be more than €3,000”, say sources from the local Executive.
In line with the reduction of members with exclusive dedication by the Government, the exclusive dedication of the councilors of the opposition group is eliminated, "a prerogative that the municipal group of the Popular Party did not use for three years in the last legislature when it carried out said opposition work without a released councilor, being able to fulfill its duty of oversight of the Government effectively," they point out.
The allocation to political groups for their operations has also been reduced, from €2,000 annually plus €170 per councilor, which is what they received in the previous legislature, to €1,600 per group, plus €20 per councilor as a variable allowance. “This represents a saving of approximately €4,200 due to the reduction in the allocation to the current municipal groups (PP, VOX, and PSOE), and the fact that the other political parties that were part of the previous municipal corporation no longer have representation.”
The number of members on the various advisory committees is also being reduced from 12 to 7, which will also result in savings in the amounts received by councilors for attending meetings. This is the most significant amount of savings, approximately €75,600. “All these measures to reduce the expenses of the members of the corporation, which were debated in plenary session, represent an overall saving of more than €100,000 per year, resources that will be available to cover other, much more pressing needs for the residents of Cieza,” the municipal government concluded.