Now that the latest round of political elections are behind us it is perhaps salutary to reflect on just how much our local elected representatives chose to take for the privilege of representing us and look at some interesting differences within our region.

Leaving aside for a moment the 'career' politicians such as our full-time MEPs and MPs, let's look at the costs of those who represent us through 'civic duty', our local folk on our district councils.

Last year the 38 councillors representing Eden District chose to take a total of £199,316. Their basic allowance was £3,500 and ten of them claimed only this and no expenses. In February they were offered a 2.2% increase but voted unanimously to reject this, saying they would rather share the current financial hardship with their electorate.

In Allerdale Councillors' basic allowance is only £2,966 and in April they rejected an offered 1% increase, freezing their allowance for the seventh year in a row.

However, in South Lakeland, where there are 51 SLDC councillors, each, with one exception, takes their maximum allowance of £3,919 plus full 'positions of responsibility' money and full expenses making a published total of £312,000 for the year.

A recent 'Freedom of Information' enquiry to SLDC revealed that the true cost of 'Members' allowances and support' was actually £425,804 for 2013/4, an average of £8350 each.

In marked contrast with their lower-paid counterparts in Eden and Allerdale SLDC councillors recently voted unanimously (with one abstention) to further increase the money they take by 1%.

At a party-political level SLDC is dominated two-to-one by Lib-Dems. Their champion (soon to be Leader?) at a national level, Tim Farron, recently said of the proposed 11% increase in MP's salaries; 'A pay rise (for MPs) is a shocking example in difficult times like these.... crass and unjustifiable'. So what does that make a pay increase for local Councillors, Tim?

A conservative (with a small 'c'!) estimate of how much district councillors chose to take for themselves in all of the districts of Cumbria would be around £2 to £2.5 million. Add to this the allowances totalling well over £1 million taken by our 84 county councillors (many who are also district councillors) and the true cost of so called 'local democracy' starts to emerge.

When will our local politicians see sense, put the brakes on their pay and expenses gravy train and save money for the taxpayer by moving to some form of unitary authority, which they all claim to support ?

Ian Kell

Mealbank