COUNCILLORS will be given £30,000 each over the next years to fund projects and groups in their communities.

The £1.9m councillor priority fund scheme was approved by Oxfordshire County Council's cabinet yesterday and will see all 63 members receive £15,000 a year for the next two years.

Labour group leader Liz Brighouse urged the cabinet to rethink the idea and stop 'money going into councillor's back pockets for pet projects'.

She said: "It's absolutely open to criticism and challenge - people will ask why has one group been funded but another hasn't.

"Decisions made over the course of the children's centre transition fund have often come back and been reconsidered - it will be 63 times worse and with more money at risk.

"It is extremely difficult for individuals to give state aid without any proper training.

But cabinet members staunchly defended the scheme and council leader Ian Hudspeth said it would bring vital funding to groups across the county.

He said: "It's about localism and local decisions being made by local councillors.

"There are some big discrepancies and an awful lot of need in the rural areas, which could benefit from this and I am fully in favour of it."

Cabinet member for local communities Mark Gray encouraged councillors to pool their funding.

He added that the Labour group's pooling last year was 'admirable' and helped fund a new minibus for Aspire and also gave funds to The Ark-T Centre, Donnington Doorstep and AGE UK.