CAMPAIGNERS against an elected mayor for Darlington have warned that the position comes with "a hefty price tag".

Freedom of Information requests to the 12 local authorities in England that have elected mayors have revealed their salaries dwarf those previously paid to council leaders.

In some cases, the salary is more than seven times what was paid to the leader.

However, members of the Mayor for Darlington group have said the salary will provide value for money to the electorate.

The highest-paid elected mayor is in Stoke, where Mark Meredith receives £76,231.16, a year.

Ten out of the 12 mayors earn more than £58,000 and in Hartlepool and Middlesbrough, the salaries are more than £60,000.

Hartlepool Mayor Stuart Drummond's salary of £60,076 represented a 734 per cent rise compared to the previous leader's allowance of £7,200 - a rise exceeded only by Hackney.

In Hackney, the elected mayor picks up £73,085, and he also has six cabinet members who earn £245,000-a-year between them and four "cabinet advisors" who earn £93,500-a-year between them - figures the Darlington No group described as "eye-watering".

Alan Charlton, chairman of the Say No to an Elected Mayor campaign, said: "The people of Darlington should be warned that selecting an elected mayor comes with a hefty price tag.

"At the moment, the council leader draws a salary of £29,386.

"Should a yes vote be returned, council tax payers can expect that figure to increase to between £60,000 and £70,000 - an increase of up to £160,000 over four years.

"Before they vote, I would urge voters to think very carefully whether creating a fat-cat elected mayor is in the best interests of the town.

"No wonder so many places are looking to scrap their elected mayors and return to the system we have in Darlington now."

However, Stuart Hill from the Mayor for Darlington campaign said in many places the elected mayors were very popular.

He said: "Ken Livingstone is probably the most expensive mayor, but you don't hear many people in London cribbing about how much he costs.

"They see him as being a champion of Londoners against the Government, particularly on issues such as public transport.

"There's enormous scope to improve delivery of services in Darlington - not necessarily to save money on what's been spent, but to get better value for money that's been spent. We actually think that improvements can be achieved by an elected mayor who would not have to go through a political caucus."