Written question asked by Lord Mann (Labour) on Friday, 11 June 2010, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 16 June 2010. It was answered by Robert Neill (Conservative) on Wednesday, 16 June 2010 on behalf of the Department for Communities and Local Government.

Councillors

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the presumed minimum hours of work are for local councillors remunerated for cabinet responsibilities.

Answer: My Department does not hold this information. Being a councillor is not a job, it is a vocation. Accordingly councillors do not receive salaries, rather they receive allowances designed to ensure that being a councillor does not leave them out of pocket. The roles of the councillor will vary from authority to authority, ward to ward and even person to person. It is for each authority to determine how best to organise their meetings and for each councillor to determine how best to organise his or her workload.The working practices of councillors who are members of a local authority's cabinet are therefore a matter for that authority.

Secondary information