COUNTY councillors are preparing to award themselves huge pay rises in excess of 23 per cent.

A report due to be discussed by councillors today recommends that everyone gets a raise. It will place them among the best-paid in the country.

An MP condemned the proposed pay increases as a 'slap in the face' for thousands of people made redundant in the county or having to take a pay cut. And some councillors questioned the wisdom of such a hike, saying it would annoy the public.

The suggested rises have been put forward by an independent panel selected by Lancashire County Council, including Gloria Oates, the High Sheriff.

The biggest rise will be to Hazel Harding, the leader of the council. Her pay will go up by 51 per cent from £22,500 to £34,000. She will receive £25,500 for her role as leader plus £8,500, the recommended basic allowance for each councillor.

The report says the new rates would make the councillors among the best paid in England. A table of 'like authorities' reveals the leader of Birmingham City Council, with a population of 2.5million, receives £25,000, while regular councillors receive a basic £9,866.

Lancashire has a population of 1.1million and is fourth largest authority in the country. While the national average basic allowance is £8,080, the average paid to council leaders is £18,600. The average paid to cabinet members is £10,600 -- compared to £21,250 for cabinet members in Lancashire.

The report will be presented to the county council's policy, best value and resources executive committee today then passed to the full council for discussion at another date. It states the independent panel picked the levels to reflect the amount of time each post involved.

It said its aims were to make sure councillors did not suffer unreasonable financial disadvantage as a result of their job. Each post's allowance is designed to reflect the commitment and complexity of the role. The panel also hopes the increased allowance will lead to more people volunteering to be county councillors.

But Ribble Valley MP Nigel Evans said: "This is an appalling mugging of council tax payers throughout Lancashire. If they were taking performance-related pay they would be taking a cut not an increase.

"At Christmas, giving themselves such a massive rise when many county council residents in farming and manufacturing are either losing their jobs or taking a cut, is quite simply a slap in the face.

LibDem Leader David Whipp said: "I think there will be concern from the public over whether they are getting value for money. It is up to county councillors to prove they are giving that value."

But Coun Tony Martin, who holds the finance portfolio on Lancashire County Council and will be chairing today's meeting, said: "An independent panel has drawn up these proposals and I think they will be passed by the council. They are designed to reflect that this is a full-time rolefor many councillors. There is no reason for them to suffer financial hardship."