SOME of the lowest-paid employees at Wirral council will receive a £250 boost thanks to a controversial legal decision.

A Conservative motion insisting Wirral council follow through plans to give £250 to its lowest-paid employees was voted through with Lib-Dem support.

The idea was part of the council’s previous Tory and Lib-Dem administration’s budget.

Labour, who now run the council, had hoped to overturn it at a town hall meeting this week.

But after Conservative and Lib- Dem councillors united to force it through, the council’s legal director, Bill Norman, told Labour the proposal “will be implemented”.

His decision effectively removed the ruling group’s power to change the budget set by the previous administration.

It came after Tory and Lib-Dem councillors united for a series of key votes.

Labour is understood to be seeking external legal advice after what insiders described as “lively conversations” after the town hall budget meeting.

Describing it as “chaos”, Labour council leader Steve Foulkes said: “We are spending money here when we have not seen the budget implications.” The combined force of the two parties overrode Labour’s hopes of changing the proposal.