Redundancy payments have been made to 49 senior officers at Somerset Council costing £7.4 million with one officer receiving a payoff of half a million pounds. Farmers in Somerset are warning of major problems with this year’s harvest that could make food more expensive. This year’s Royal Bath and West Show opens today... and more.
Redundancy payments have been made to 49 senior officers at Somerset Council as the council takes steps to prevent bankruptcy by trimming its wage bill. The payments are costing the council £7.4 million with the outgoing executive director for resources and corporate services alone receiving more than half a million pounds. Somerset Council says making the senior officers redundant will save £2.9 million a year, with a further 201 other employees due to be made redundant saving £9.4 million. The Liberal Democrat-controlled Council has defended the payments saying they are in line with the employment conditions of each post holder.
Farmers in Somerset are warning of major problems with this year’s harvest that could make food more expensive this autumn. They say it’s due to the recent bad weather and Somerset having had its wettest winter since records began back in 1836.
A group representing bus users in Somerset has criticised First Bus for taking a local bus out of service and moving it to Swansea. Somerset Bus Partnership has posted a photo of the green bus marked with Somerset taking passengers around Swansea. The Partnership says buses assigned to run in Somerset should be kept in the County as cover for when a bus breaks down and to avoid a service being cancelled.
This year’s Royal Bath and West Show, showcasing the best farming and agriculture across the UK, opens today. Around 30,000 visitors are expected at the Shepton Mallet showground for the first of the 3-day event.
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