Budget plans 78% funding boost for mayor's office
LDRSA mayoral office has said plans to increase its funding by 78% are to tackle understaffing in the department.
The Tees Valley Combined Authority (TVCA) draft budget proposals include a 78.68% financial boost for Mayor Ben Houchen's office, most of which is set aside for paying staff.
TVCA has attributed the rise to "a previous period of understaffing".
The total mayoral office budget is set to rise from £272,000 in the current financial year to £486,000 from April 1.
The sum is broken down into different categories, with the biggest change coming in expenditure on employees.
That is set to see funding increase from £263,000 to £452,000, providing the budget is approved following the current period of consultation.
The total mayoral office budget figure then rises by between £12,000 and 13,000 each year within the medium-term financial plan, which can be put down almost entirely to expected pay awards for employees in Houchen's office, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.
The other changes from the current financial year to 2026/27 include an increase from £9,000 to £13,000 in the transport budget, while new features for the upcoming year see £1,000 assigned for "supplies and services" and £20,000 for "support services charge".
A TVCA spokesperson said: "This change in budget reflects a previous period of understaffing and an expected move towards more standard staffing levels in future years.
"As the draft budget makes clear these costs are funded directly from central government grants and not from local taxpayers."
