Councillors have been told they must tighten the purse strings to stop accusations of extravagance.

Brighton and Hove City Council's finance spokesman Simon Burgess has called for a review of members' perks following reports earlier this year that taxpayers were picking up the tab for expensive meals and snacks to keep councillors refreshed during meetings.

He said: "In meeting (councillors') needs, we do also have to reflect our duty to local taxpayers to obtain maximum value for money, within tight financial constraints. There needs to be a review of the provision of benefits to all members."

Coun Burgess wants the council's scrutiny committee to set up an audit review panel to look at how savings can be made.

Coun Burgess, who was speaking at a full council meeting on Thursday, is understood to favour scrapping free meals during council meetings.

He told The Argus: "I am asking for members to look at all sorts of benefits covering anything from refreshments to parking and information technology - anything we get above allowances.

"There have been issues about refreshments in the past. I'm concerned about how these things look to the public. Councillors put in a lot of hours for not much money and expect to be able to get a reasonable meal. But we need a public examination of what we do."

In August, The Argus revealed that Brighton and Hove councillors had run up a food and drinks bill of more than £16,000 in 12 months.

Figures obtained by The Argus under the Freedom of Information Act showed the authority's 66 members spent £1,815 on £27.50-a-head meals at six full council meetings.

A further £100.08 was spent on 48 litres of mineral water, £69.30 on 18 litres of tea and coffee and £35 on 14 litres of orange juice at full council meetings in the past financial year. In total, £16,725.69 was spent catering for 94 council meetings.

The investigation prompted Labour transport councillor Craig Turton to demand an urgent inquiry into the cost of the meals. But council leader Ken Bodfish and Conservative councillor Peter Willows said the cost of the food reflected the market rate.