Why does council cost so much?

The town council precept in Lewes went up by more than 10 per cent this year, but spokesman Steve Watts says it is not clear why so little goes on 'front line' services.

And he added: 'The town council is raising 480,000 this year and 70 per cent of that is going on administration costs, including running the town hall.

'Such a great civic venue should be making money for the town, not costing us money.'

Labour plans to challenge the council on this at the annual town meeting on April 23.

The Lewes Town Council precept is 480,000 (77.90 band-D), Newhaven is 214,290 (56.48), Peacehaven is 279,190 (58.61) and Seaford is 195,834 (20.49).

Cllr Jim Daly, chairman of Lewes Town Council's finance committee, said: 'There is not really a direct comparison between town councils as each one of the 8,000 or so in England is very different.

'Lewes owns and operates substantial land and property, much of which could be lost to the community if it did not.

'The town hall, for instance, was purchased a few years ago to ensure the future for this historic asset to the town.

'It hosts many popular events through the year and is increasingly in demand as a venue for weddings.

'We aim to ensure that it pays its way as far as such an historic building can.

'The All Saints Centre has been saved from closure and faces a brighter future with a booming diary of events.

'The questions raised are perhaps understandable, given the rather misleading presentation in the recent council tax leaflet.

'Unfortunately we had no control over its publication and our new way of accounting does not directly compare with the previous year figures.

'Mr Watts has not, so far, asked us directly to answer any questions, but in fact over 70 per cent of our total expenditure is on "front-line services", and the administration overheads are relatively modest for an organisation of our type.

'We welcome any enquiry into where the money goes, and the details of our new financial structure will be available for everyone at the town meeting.'