An independent panel’s recommendation of a 13 per cent rise in the basic allowance paid to Cambridgeshire county councillors has been rejected: they’ll get a 1 per cent rise instead.

Councillors themselves approved the changes during a full council meeting at Shire Hall, Cambridge, today.

The independent report had recommended that the basic allowance of £7,610 increase to £8,600 but that was thrown out.

The revised allowances package will see major changes in the way responsibility payments are shared out as Cambridgeshire moves from a cabinet to a committee system.

Above the basic allowance the leader of the council’s largest political group will receive a special responsibility allowance (SRA) of £15,000; the leaders of the Lib Dem and UKIP group receive SRAs of £11,000 and the leaders of the Labour and Independent Group receive SRAs of £7,000.

In addition the service committee chairmen will get SRAs of £12,000 whilst the chairman of the general purposes committee is entitled to an additional allowance of £6,000.

Parties are entitled to nominate one of their councillors as the lead councillor for each of the service committees – their SRAs will vary from £2,400 to £6,000 depending on the size of the group.

The full details - including payments for deputies and vice chairmen- will be published later.