A WILTSHIRE councillor has donated the extra cash from an increase in his allowances to charity.

Councillor Mark Connolly, who represents Tidworth on Wiltshire Council has donated his £120 annual allowance increase to a charity set up to benefit the town.

Cllr Franklin has joined fellow Conservative, Tidworth mayor Christopher Franklin, in expressing his opposition to the increases in allowances that Wiltshire Council approved last month.

Cllr Connolly said: "I gave this money as I thought it was wrong for councillors to vote for increases in their allowances when staff are being made redundant and having pay freezes. The council also has to make millions of pounds in savings and the increase in allowances does not help the situation."

Cllr Connolly added: "I hope that other councillors, especially those who will see increases in excess of 20 per cent in their special responsibility allowances, also do the right thing and either don't accept their increase or give it to charity."

Cllr Franklin, the Mayor of Tidworth, has written to Devizes MP Claire Perry to tell her he will not be renewing his Conservative party membership because he is so disgusted with Wiltshire Council cabinet members awarding themselves big increases in allowances. The increases bring council leader Jane Scott’s total allowances to more than £52,000 per year, which covers her positions as council leader and chairman of the health and well-being board. Other cabinet members, who have special responsibility allowances were voted increases of at least 22 per cent, from £15,101 to £18,433 a year.

Cllr Franklin said: "I am grateful to Mark Connolly for donating his allowance increase to the Mayor’s Charity, which is a charity set up to help people in Tidworth and Perham. It is acts like this that shows how councillors really feel for the community that they represent and live in.”