COUNCILLORS in Brighton and Hove are set to receive £3,000 increases in their allowances.

The move will see the total bill in Brighton and Hove rise from £560,000 to £850,000.

Ordinary members of the 78-strong authority are expected to see their basic allowance rise from £5,000 to £8,000 a year.

But members of the ruling cabinet will see their payments soar to £18,000 a year.

The council leader, currently Lynette Gwyn-Jones, will get the top allowance of £30,000, including the basic allowance.

Opposition leader Geoffrey Theobald will get £18,000 a year and the two minority leaders, Paul Elgood (Lib Dems) and Pete West (Green), will each get £10,000. Again these figures include the basic allowance.

Councillors who chair remaining committees, forums and scrutiny boards will each get extra payments of £2,000 a year.

There was controversy last year when the old system of attendance allowances for meetings was scrapped in favour of a flat rate system whichincreased the total amount paid. And one of the councillors set to benefit from the rise described the increase as "scandalous".

Coun Paul Elgood added: "This is happening when council tax is soaring and when cuts may have to be made in some services."

Councillors appointed a panel of three to work out the new allowances.

The trio were James Braithwaite,

chairman of Business Link Sussex, Peter Field, managing director of

estate agents Fleury Manico, and Sir David Watson, University of Brighton director.

They were given information on payments made to MPs, Ministers, people who sit on public bodies and on London boroughs. The panel said a higher basic allowance should be paid to all councillors to reflect the variety of roles they would be fulfiling and that no attendance allowances should be paid.

The recommendations will now go before the cabinet and council next week. If agreed, payments will start later this month.

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