A COUNCIL leader Miles Parkinson has called on a national campaign group to ‘correct its figures’.

The Taxpayers’ Alliance accused councillors of increasing their allowances by more than inflation when they actually cut them by five per cent in March.

Coun Parkinson, of Hyndburn, is angry that the Taxpayers’ Alliance produced a press release including a table of councils which put his authority among a ‘dirty dozen’ of those that awarded the biggest rises.

The figures — based on changes between 2010/11 and 2011/12 - put Hyndburn at 12th in the table with a 4.7 per cent increase from £4,498 a year to £4,709.

The incoming Labour group reduced the allowance by five per cent to the original £4,498 in March.

The Taxpayers’ Alliance table ignores Labour Blackburn with Darwen’s 2010 decision to reduce basic pay for members by 10 per cent to £5,392.80 a year.

It also ignores Tory Ribble Valley’s increasing their basic councillors’ allowance from £2,685 annually by five per cent to £2,844 from this April, the first rise since 2008.

Lancashire county council and Chorley, Pendle, Burnley, and Rossendale have all frozen their allowance in recent years.

Coun Parkinson said: “I shall be writing to the Taxpayers’ Alliance and asking them to correct their figures. Although the Conservative leadership did increase allowances in April 2011, Labour took the first opportunity to reduce them. The alliance ignored this, giving totally the wrong impression of Hyndburn council.”

Former Tory leader Peter Britcliffe said the council followed independent advice over the 2011 increase and supported the 2012 reduction.

Lancashire County Council last increased its basic allowance for councillors by £100, from £10,039 to £10,139, in 2009 as a result of a one per cent staff pay increase and has kept it the same since.

Allowances for Pendle councillors has been frozen at £3,000 a year, while Burnley’s has been pegged at £2,700. Rossendale’s remains at £3,342 a year for the third year running.

COUNCIL ALLOWANCES

  • Hyndburn £4,709
  • Blackburn with Darwen £5,392
  • Ribble Valley £2,844
  • Lancashire £10,139
  • Pendle £3,000
  • Rossendale £3,342
  • Burnley £2,700