LABOUR’S Parliamentary candidate for south Pembrokeshire is calling for rules covering severance payments for senior council officials to be changed.

Following the payment of more than £330,000 for the controversial chief executive Bryn Parry-Jones election candidate Delyth Evans has written to the Welsh Government asking for change.

Ms Evans also called for an end to the use of closed council meetings, apart from in exceptional circumstances, claiming they deny the public fair access to the decision-making process in her letter to the minister responsible for public services, Leighton Andrews.

Ms Evans said these two changes would help to restore public trust in local government.

In her letter to the Minister, Ms. Evans wrote:

“I would like to put forward two proposals to strengthen local government in the future:

1. The system for remunerating senior council officials needs to be improved, so that chief executives and other senior officials are not awarded excessive pay deals which are completely out of kilter with the pay of the majority of council employees. Large pay-offs for officials who are forced to leave their posts due to misconduct or other failures should be disallowed. Despite being the smallest local authority in Wales, the chief executive of Pembrokeshire County Council received the highest salary amongst all Welsh local authority chief executives. This is clearly wrong and illustrates the urgent need for reform.

2. There should be a clear presumption that all council meetings are open to the public, and closed sessions should only be allowed under exceptional circumstances such as safeguarding or commercial confidentiality. The use of closed meetings has frequently been abused by the political leadership in Pembrokeshire, and new regulations are needed to eliminate this practice.”

At a public meeting in Pembroke Dock organised by the Pembrokeshire Labour Party, Delyth Evans joined Councillors Paul Miller and Tony Wilcox and Labour’s Assembly candidate Marc Tierney to hear the views of local people about the pay-off to Mr Parry-Jones and about the way the council is run.

Ms Evans said: “There was widespread support for the view that significant changes are needed both to the culture and operation of Pembrokeshire County Council.”