YOU have made a real meal, both in stories and in editorial, about our proposed rises in councillors' allowances in Burnley, I must try to set the record straight.

The figure quoted, of a 70 per cent rise, is wrong, The actual rise in budget provision for next year is £28,000 or 54 per cent.

That should be compared with the 47 per cent rise in inflation since the rates for attendance allowance were last changed 12 years ago.

A figure of 70 per cent is only arrived at by assuming that the proposed rates are paid for a full year for the current number of councillors of 48. Neither will happen.

We are moving from a committee system of decision-making to an executive/scrutiny split of councillor roles.

The responsibilities of executive (cabinet) members and of scrutiny chairmen will be significantly greater than those of current committee chairmen.

In this context, it made sense to go back to the recommendations of the independent panel which reported two years ago.

Its recommendations would have involved tripling allowances at an extra cost of £100,000. We are proposing less than a third of that.

The £1,200 rate for councillors without special responsibility is only two thirds the rate proposed by the panel.

The rates for members with special responsibilities will be greater.

Not only that panel, but the Citizens Jury on new democratic structures endorsed the principles of proper recompense to councillors.

They said councillors in the executive should be paid for hours they dedicate to their duties, and allowances and reasonable expenses. And councillors not in the executive should receive allowances for their time commitment to council and community related activity.

The new allowances will still be low compared to elsewhere. Burnley is next to the bottom of the Lancashire league in terms of the average allowance per member. At the new rates, we will be in the middle of the table.

I believe you are wrong in the assumption that public opinion is opposed to councillors being properly rewarded. Out of 348 replies from our Citizens Panel, only 20 were against a rise in members' allowances.

We have to enable anyone, especially younger people who are working or with children, to be able to stand for election. We should not simply regard the title of councillor as an honour, though it is, but it is also a job.

COUNCILLOR P KENYON, Huffing Lane, Burnley.