Newly elected Councillor David Taylor publishes his pay slip.

Councillor David Taylor, Conservative Councillor in Romford, has become the first UK politician to self-publish his pay slip. 

Romford Councillor David Taylor hopes that by publishing his pay slip it will encourage others to show “radical transparency” and help restore trust in local politicians. 

Councillor Taylor ran a campaign that focused on restoring trust in politicians, standing as a local Conservatives Councillor at the height of the ‘partygate’ scandal. He also made a promise to his electorate that he would publish his expenses and pay. 

“With trust in politicians so low, it’s more important that ever that we be transparent”, Taylor said. 

“Whilst Parliament and local councils publish data on politician’s allowances, I believe it’s often too hard to find or not clear enough. This has to change. 

My self-publishing my payslip I have not only revealed the level of my allowance, but also given residents a chance to see the tax that I am paying. My allowance won’t be hidden behind difficult to navigate webpages. It’s time for radical transparency”.

A 2022 study by Carnegie Trust found that 46% of the public in England selected honesty and integrity as important values, with 61% believing current government doesn’t show these values. 

“I’m not going to get it right 100% of the time” Taylor said, “But as long as I’m transparent, people can properly hold me to account and challenge me”. 

Taylor will continue to publish his payslips throughout his time as a Councillor and hopes it encourages others to do the same. 

Taylor was paid £1,511.43, which included arrears of £643.76 for May 2022. £302.30 was paid in tax and £91.22 in National Insurance. This equalled a take home pay of £1,118.01.