COUNCILLORS received nearly half a million pounds in allowances during the last financial year.

Payment for Wigan Council members' basic and special responsibilities plus allowances for attending committee and Council meetings totalled £456,617.16.

Councillors received payments in line with national allowance guidelines and the figures listed are gross amounts before income tax and National Insurance contributions.

Wigan Council finance chairman Cllr Brian Strett explained:"Members do put in an awful lot of work and many of them lose financially because of it.

"The allowances are some recompense for this.

"Members attend a hell of a lot of meetings and get the national rate. Those who work lose considerably. There are no pensions attached."

The allowance table listed here shows the busiest men in the borough - figureheads and committee chairmen - received the highest amounts. Their positions are noted by asterisks. Councillor Ward £

Kevin Anderson (Hope Carr) 4,502.01

Brian Baldwin (Worsley Mesnes)* 15,164.33

Keith Baldwin (Ince) 4,740.68

John Ball (Swinley) 4,014.03

Audrey Bennett (Abram) 5,489.37

Joy Birch (Newton) 4,501.86

Barbara Bourne (Norley) 4,406.75

Wilfred Brogan (Worsley Mesnes)* 15,688.67

Garry Brooks (Hope Carr) 1,333.65

Lynn Brooks (Beech Hill) 2,507.52

David Brown (Langtree) 3,331.86

Andrew Bullen (Ashton/Golborne) 6,327.24

Ronald Capstick (Orrell)* 13,372.16

Joseph Clarke (Atherton) 3,414.03

Margaret Coghlin (Newton) 8,059.41

Bernard Coyle (Whelley) 4,874.57

Keith Cunliffe (Leigh East) 4,269.69

Elizabeth Edwardson (Hindley) 5,198.37

William Evans (Winstanley) 4,200.54

Joseph Foster (Bryn) 3,607.30

Michael Greenwood (Langtree) 3,298.01

Mark Hale (Hope Carr) 1,550.42

Barry Hampson (Abram) 4,521.83

Stephen Hellier (Tyldesley East) 4,089.69

John Hession (Leigh Central) 5,040.54

John Hilton (Aspull/Standish) 6,402.90

John E Hilton (Ashton/Golborne)* 15,057.35

Joan Hurst (Ince) 3,253.96

Brian Jarvis (Hope Carr) 4,922.01

James Jones (Bedford/Astley) 3,894.03

David Kelly (Lightshaw) 3,961.86

Stephen Kennedy (Leigh East) 2,717.52

Paul Kirkwood (Ashton/Golborne) 3,039.69

John Lea (Bedford/Astley) 3,151.86

Samuel Little (Hindsford) 5,758.50

Susan Loudon (Atherton) 5,943.17

Ronald McAllister (Hindley Green) 4,118.37

John McGarty (Beech Hill) 5,079.03

Alan Melling (Bryn) 3,399.69

Mildred Millington (Bryn) 4,307.52

David Molyneux (Ince) 6,755.07

Tom Morris (Aspull/Standish) 3,729.69

Stephen Murphy (Hindley Green) 2,351.01

John O'Neill (Langtree) 6,627.24

Stephen Parker (Norley)* 13,258.88

Maria Pendleton (Whelley) 4,478.52

William Pendleton (Whelley) 4,051.86

Kenneth Pye (Newton) 4,702.23

Christopher Ready (Aspull/Standish) 4,432.71

Geoffrey Roberts (Winstanley)* 13,716.74

Alfred Robinson (Hindley) 7,772.43

Christine Roscoe (Beech Hill) 5,632.97

William Rotherham (Worsley Mesnes) 5,546.91

George Seaward (Orrell) 5,519.48

Stuart Shaw (Hindley) 5,753.53

Tom Sherratt (Lightshaw)** 14,895.65

William Simmons (Hindley Green) 5,669.22

Eunice Smethurst (Abram) 5,752.85

Peter Smith (Leigh Central)*** 23,181.61

William Smith (Hindsford) 7,137.24

Alan Stephenson (Tyldesley East)* 15,043.01

Brian Strett (Lightshaw)* 14,599.52

Jack Sumner (Atherton) 6,103.82

Ernest Swift (Orrell) 7,511.58

Brian Thomas (Leigh Central) 3,055.35

Neil Turner (Norley) 8,237.34

Susan Turner (Swinley) 4,889.66

Anne Turnock (Leigh East) 3,909.69

Fred Walker (Bedford/Astley) 5,309.88

George Walsh (Swinley) 3,960.54

Brian Wilson (Tyldesley East)* 10,954.37

Rona Winkworth (Winstanley) 4,898.37

Arthur Wright (Hindsford) 4,666.20

*Committee chairman

**Deputy Leader of the Council

***Leader of the Council

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