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22
Dec
Row over hotel bill for mayor’s political advisor at Labour conference
York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority has defended spending £639.20 on a hotel room for the mayor’s political advisor to attend the Labour Party conference.
The Stray Ferret revealed a series of expenses claims made by Labour mayor David Skaith between May 2024 and January 2025 last week, which were only disclosed following our investigation.
Mr Skaith was elected mayor on May 3 last year. But 19 months on, there is still no record of his monthly expenses on the York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority website.
By comparison, Jo Coles, the deputy mayor for policing, is legally required to publish her personal expenses.
Labour conference
One of the claims we revealed was for £639.20 for a hotel in Liverpool on September 23, 2024, for the mayor's political advisor.
When the Stray Frerret questioned the nature of the claim, a combined authority spokesperson confirmed it was for a two-night stay while the mayor’s advisor attended the Labour Party conference.
Mr Skaith paid for his own accommodation.
A combined authority spokesperson defended the move and said it was a “legitimate expense” as the advisor is a combined authority employee.
They said:
The mayor’s political adviser is an employee of the York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority. The York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority Order 2023 (Article 5), states that the mayor is allowed to appoint one political advisor and so this is deemed a legitimate expense. Attendance at party conferences enables political advisers to keep up to date on policy developments, network with key stakeholders, and provide on‑site support and advice to the mayor.
Cllr Chris Steward, leader of the Conservative group on City of York Council.
'Totally cavalier attitude with public money'
However, Cllr Chris Steward, leader of the Conservative group on City of York Council, said the claim displayed a cavalier attitude towards public money by spending it on a party political event.
He said:
This is an utterly ludicrous amount of money for a combined authority employee at what is clearly a totally party political event.
Like MPs and their staff there is no way there should have been a claim for any money but beyond that such an expensive stay shows a totally cavalier attitude with public money.
This is sadly just the latest wasteful spending for a mayor who should be focused on delivering for residents and not his political cronies.
Mr Skaith has pledged to publish his expenses claims in full on the combined authority website from the new year.
A spokesperson for the mayor told the Stray Ferret:
The mayor takes transparency very seriously, as such from Monday 5 January his diary, gifts and hospitality register, and expenses will all be published each quarter, alongside information about his office.
Meanwhile, at a combined authority overview and scrutiny committee meeting on Thursday (December 18), Mr Skaith admitted that the combined authority had “not been good enough” on transparency.
He said:
I will hold our hands up and say that as a combined authority we have not been good enough on this [transparency].
We have made big changes recently to make sure we are more open and transparent, particularly on myself. I have also committed to my senior officers in the combined authority to be much more open and transparent on things like expenses, travelling and all the rest of it.
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