THE biggest council in the North-East - whose number of councillors is due to double - will spend almost £177,000 on kitting out members' homes with computer equipment.

Durham County Council has 63 councillors, but that will double to 126 at the elections in May in preparation for the county council and seven district councils becoming one unitary authority next year.

Councillors, who receive a basic allowance of about £10,500, have computers at home so they can access council documents and send emails.

But it is expected there will be a rise in the money paid to councillors, said to be reward for the greater workload and responsibility under the unitary authority.

The Labour-run council's cabinet approved plans to offer the new recruits the "essential toolkit" of a "smart phone", a laptop computer, a home multi-functional device for scanning, photocopying and printing, and broadband at home.

County treasurer Stuart Crowe said the equipment was needed to ensure that the new members could operate effectively from home and "take part in the decision-making process without necessarily the need to come to County Hall.''

The equipment would cost about £176,990 and there would be annual revenue costs of £98,350.

John Shuttleworth, Independent councillor for Weardale, criticised the move.

He said: "All the parties, Labour, Liberal Democrat and Tory, are going around recruiting old-age pensioners.

"They'll think broadband is some kind of big elastic band. It won't be computers they want, but abacuses. It will be corner shop councillors trying to run a supermarket.''

Cabinet member for library and culture Michelle Hodgson said: "This is the damned if we do, damned if we don't, report."

He said the council needed to have everything in place to make sure the new intake had the tools to do the job.

The council will also spend £8,000 increasing the County Hall members' car park and £180,000 in providing accommodation for the extra councillors.

A rarely-used bar will become a group room or meeting room, and a lounge will become a resource centre for councillors.

Chester-le-Street South Labour councillor Rita Carr said she hoped the new resource centre would be solely for councillors, as members of the public sometimes tried to get into the existing one.