COUNCILLORS in Test Valley have awarded themselves pay rises as they prepare to slash their budget.

While all councillors will get £12 more, Tory council leader Ian Carr will see his allowance go up by £1,093 to £11,850.

It comes as council finance bosses forecast they need save £1.56m from the council’s £13m budget next year putting frontline services and dozens of jobs under threat.

The decision by the Tory run council sparked anger among the opposition Liberal Demo-crat councillors who refused to back the pay rises and said they would not take them.

The rises were recommended by an independent pay panel which said Councillor Carr deserved his rise due to an “ever-increasing public profile” as the face for the council who was “under pressure to justify its actions”.

The pay panel said his allowance remained the lowest of all Hampshire council leaders. All councillors will from next year get a £12 increase to their “basic allowance” of £6,238.

Lib Dem group leader Cllr Len Gates said: “I see no reason why there should be any increase at all at a time when staff wages are being frozen, lots of staff are being cut and we are being told that we need to cut our budget considerably.”

Deputy council leader Cllr Martin Hatley praised the panel and said: “It’s up to the conscience of everyone whether they take the allowances.”

He said the new scheme would actually save £1,000.