I had an interesting interview with South Holland District Council's Remuneration Panel today. They are an independant panel with a mix of business backgrounds and I have to say a refreshing line of questioning. It is their job to recommend to the Council the levels of remuneration that they think a Councillor should receive in addition to travelling expenses. This includes a basic allowance for all councillors and a special allowance over and above the basic allowance for those councillors in positions of responibility, ie the Leader, Deputy Leader, Leader of the opposition, Cabinet members and Chair and Vice chair of Council to name a few. Not an easy task!

One of the questions asked was where did I rate myself on a professional scale for example higher than a teacher or lower than a doctor? My political answer was that I felt I was in a specialist profession that aligned itself with the Local Government Association's pay scale.

How many hours do I spend on Council business? Fortunately I was able to produce a printout of my diary over the last year, which didn't show many free days, so in my case as Deputy Leader and with, a large portfolio covering leisure, arts, sport and rural services, i have to admit I am nearly full time. (I am a registrar for births, deaths & marriages in between!)

So when I first volunteered to put myself up for election as a District Councillor back in 1999, was I aware of what this voluntary job entailed? Not a clue! The job has constantly changed from that time from one where all decisions were the remit of the full council to a situation now where individuals, such as myself, are directly responsible for the decisons we make and only a few around the budget and policies are the remit of the full council. No wonder then that I spend so much time at the council and on numerous outside bodies - I need to know what is going on in my portfolio to equip me to make the right decisions and be answerable to fellow councillors and the general public.

It is a huge job, but could I do it if I were in full time employment? No way - and therein lies the problem. Do you pay professional wages to encourage business and younger people into the job or do you stick to the old method of asking people to give up their time voluntarily for expenses that barely cover your costs. A difficult decision and one that will no doubt be eagerly awaited by the press when the remuneration panel makes their recommendations.