THE North-East’s biggest council has come under fire after paying out more than £6.3m in travel expenses in a single year.

Independent councillor John Shuttleworth said Durham County Council’s expenses bill “beggars belief”.

Jeff Garfoot, the council’s head of finance, said the figure equated to less than £5 per employee per week, but travel costs would be reviewed.

Following a request made by Coun Shuttleworth under the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act, it emerged that between April 1, last year, and March 31, this year, the council paid £5,352,381.73 in staff travel expenses or mileage payments, and £965,741.94 in essential car user allowances – a flat monthly rate to 1,196 staff. The total spend was £6,318,123.67.

The money was spent during Durham County Council’s first year as a unitary authority, after County Durham’s previous county and district councils were abolished on March 31 last year.

The new “super council” provides all authority services in the county, has a budget of £1.2bn and employs 25,000 people.

However, last month, Mr Garfoot said officials were drawing up plans to make savings of nearly ten per cent during the next two years.

And cuts announced last week by Communities and Local Government Secretary Eric Pickles mean a further £16.5m must come off the bill this year, prompting council leader Simon Henig to warn this would not be achieved without reducing services.

Commenting on the FOI figures, Coun Shuttleworth, who represents Weardale, said: “We’ve created a monster.

The council is too big.

“The figures beggar belief, even more so when we are going through a recession.

“We’re supposed to be being prudent. For this amount, the world and his wife must have been going here, there and everywhere. Any way you look at it, it’s excessive.”

However, Mr Garfoot said: “It’s important to put all statistics like this in to the right context and, as such, I want to make it clear that the majority of these costs are incurred by staff such as social workers, home care workers and planning and building inspectors, delivering essential community-based services.

“Some 25,000 staff are employed by the council, so this figure equates to an average for each employee of less than £5 a week.

“However, like all public sector bodies, we are reviewing expenditure across the board, in the light of the significant reductions in budget we are facing.

“Travel costs will certainly be part of this wider review.”