The former deputy leader of Warwickshire County Council advocated getting rid of taxpayer-funded political assistants just months after his own party brought them in.

Cllr Stephen Shaw, who was in charge of budget setting and leader Cllr George Finch's right-hand man at the time, made the comments away from the public eye but in front of elected officials and staff ahead of February's budget.

Discussing potential savings to help balance the books at the cash-strapped authority, Cllr Shaw declared that the political assistants allocated to the three biggest groups at the county council – Reform, Liberal Democrats and the Conservatives – were "a waste of money" that could be spent "on much better things".

It was announced in April that Cllr Shaw would vacate the deputy leader's role due to changed work commitments but continue as portfolio holder for finance and property.

However, new deputy Cllr James Crocker was assigned to that portfolio in Cllr Finch's recent cabinet reshuffle with Cllr Shaw shifted to oversee transport and planning.

Cllr Finch led the charge to bring in political assistants shortly after becoming leader in July 2025, a decision that scraped full council approval via the casting vote of then-chair Cllr Ed Harris, a Reform member at the time.

While politically restricted like other council officers, the assistants have extra discretion to "speak to the public with the intention of affecting support for a political party" and "publish… work or other material intended to affect public support for a political party".

The roles were paid for through back-up funds until the end of March with Reform allocating a permanent £156,000-per-year budget from the start of 2026-27 to cover salaries and on-costs.

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The Liberal Democrats and Conservatives included that in their alternative budget proposals but Labour and the Green Party did not, although the Greens did agree to its inclusion in a joint proposal with the Lib Dems which eventually fell away.

In the end, the Conservatives supported a tweaked Reform budget, meaning any decision to pull they money behind the political assistants would now require a fresh decision.

Like the rest of his group, Cllr Shaw voted for the political assistants in July 2025 and for Reform's budget in February.

He told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: "I want the best value for money for the residents of Warwickshire but I have nothing more to say on the matter."

Afforded the opportunity to distance himself from the behind-the-scenes comments, Cllr Shaw reiterated that he had nothing more to say.

Cllr Finch said that he and Cllr Shaw had agreed during the budget-setting process that "political assistants are very important to the direction of the council".

"Unfortunately, we have seen the establishment running the council for a number of years, not the political leadership," he added.

"That was why we brought them in originally. Yes, we all want value for money for Warwickshire taxpayers and that is why political assistants are very important. Most councils have them anyway, so it is not a debate about not having them."

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Put to Cllr Finch that Cllr Shaw had not taken the opportunity to distance himself from or clarify the comments, the leader insisted that Cllr Shaw remained "fully on board with having political assistants" and claimed suggestions to the contrary were "vicious Liberal lies".

"We have seen it time and time again, the lefty Liberals trying to split the group, spilt the council, cause division," said Cllr Finch.

"We are sticking to our guns. We think the political assistant is great value for money as it creates an atmosphere where the administration is free to govern and not bow down to the establishment."