COUNCIL bosses face many difficult decisions in the months ahead as they make massive spending cuts.

Leisure centres, bus routes, libraries, social care and highways – almost every area will be hit.

So it is correct that councillors, while admitting it would be akin to ‘turkeys voting for Christmas’, also consider their own roles.

Across the country, there are proposals on the table to reduce the number of councillors to save money.

But no such plans have been put forward in East Lancashire. Yet the figures show there is a strong argument for a similar approach here. Bolton, for example, has a councillor for every 4,300 residents, while in Manchester the figure is 5,092.

But in Blackburn with Darwen, members represent 2,185 people. The figure is 1,678 in Burnley and 1,341 in the Ribble Valley.

This clearly shows that East Lancashire has a higher proportion of councillors than neighbouring areas.

At a time when every penny must punch its weight, it is vital that councillors do not shy away from this issue.

Cutting too deep could hurt democracy, but it is hard to avoid the conclusion that some reduction needs to be made.