Councillors received £700m in allowances over three years, research finds

According to a study by the TaxPayers’ Alliance, local councillors have received £699 million in allowances over the past three years.

The report found that between 2012-15, 238 councils raised the basic allowance for councillors, while 208 councils managed to raise the total bill for allowances an expenses.

The data shows that Waverly Council increased the basic allowance by 83 per cent from £2,454 to £4,501, while Moray Council paid the highest basic allowance at £16,722.

Jonathan Isaby, chief executive of the TaxPayers' Alliance, said: “It goes to show that not every council has prioritised finding savings or cutting taxes over awarding local politicians above inflation allowances.

“With the nation's finances yet to be fixed, councillors across the country will continue to have to make difficult decisions. In order for them to have the moral authority to carry out that very important job, councillors must show restraint when it comes to their own taxpayer-funded allowances and ease the burden on hard-pressed families.”

However, a spokesperson for the Local Government Association (LGA) argued that financial support for councillors is necessary to ensure people from all walks of life are to take part in local politics.

They said: “Providing financial support ensures that local democracy does not become the preserve of the privileged few who can afford to give their time for free.

“Allowances are a matter for individual local authorities and are decided democratically on the advice of independent remuneration panels. Residents have the opportunity to hold their councillors to account in both the council chamber and at the ballot box if they feel they are not getting value for money."