New leader pledges crackdown on wages

The new leader of Sandwell Council to-day vowed to investigate high costs and excessive paypackets at the authority.

Councillor Darren Cooper, who is taking over from ex-chief Bill Thomas, said he also wanted to improve the services that affect people's day-to-day lives. He told the Express & Star: "I will be looking very very carefully at senior manager costs.

"I want to improve and protect frontline services. Parks, leisure centres, the things that matter to the community. I will be driving them through the economic downturn.

"The council has some difficult financial decisions to make. I will be looking very very closely at the major costs of the council and the senior manager costs but I will elaborate on that more when I am leader."

Mr Cooper, aged 45, who was born and bred in Smethwick, will officially take over the leadership of the council on December 1. He is taking the reins from 69-year-old Bill Thomas, who stepped down after pleading guilty to theft last week.

"Bill Thomas had an unfortunate end to an excellent career," said Councillor Cooper. "I have been on the council for 18 years and Bill was the best leader we ever had. It is a shame we cannot honour that but the reality is he pleaded guilty to something he shouldn't have done." The father-of-three represents Soho and Victoria in Smethwick.

"My ward is the 17th most-deprived in the country and has been affected by the recession," he said. "It is important that the council helps vulnerable people and I want to be a listening leader – a leader on the frontline."

Mr Cooper, who will soon be tying the knot with his fiancee Karen, went to Crocketts Lane Primary and Smethwick Hall Boys.

"I became the first member of my family to go to university in 1996 to become a registered mental nurse and now I'm currently a team manager in home treatment."