The £1 million bill for allowances paid to Bradford councillors is expected to go up, following an independent review.

The Telegraph & Argus can reveal the gap is also likely to widen between Executive Committee members and 'back-benchers'.

But the public will get a chance to have a say on the findings of the panel, which are under wraps until an announcement on September 30.

Councillors say they have not yet been notified of the findings of the panel, made up of Rodney Brooke, former chief executive of West Yorkshire County Council and former secretary of the Association of Metropolitan authorities; youth hostel manager Lorraine Clarke and David Wilkinson, former chief executive of Bradford Training and Enterprise Council.

Councils are now bound by law to take the recommendations of panels into account when deciding payments.

The Bradford panel, which has met five times since April, has considered workloads and working hours of councillors and interviewed political groups on other councils as part of its independent analysis. The findings are confidential and have not been discussed by political groups.

Leeds Council which has 99 members - nine fewer than Bradford - has a current bill of £1,159,000. Payments range from £32,131 to the leader to about £7,800 for back-benchers.

Bradford Council leader Councillor Margaret Eaton receives £25,650 while back-benchers with no special responsibilities receive £7,700.

The Council will publish the findings of the review panel giving the public an opportunity to comment on them before considering the issue.

Today Coun Eaton, a former teacher who works 14 to 15 hours a day for the Council, said: "Clearly there has to be a sensible balance between the amount of time and effort put in by councillors and the Council taxpayers' purse. But this is the report of an independent panel and has to be considered accordingly."

Leader of the Labour group Councillor Ian Greenwood said he worked 11 hours a day with time spread between City Hall and his Little Horton ward.

He added: "It doesn't seem right to decide yourselves what you should get. If you bring in an independent panel to make recommendations you should go along with it."

The recommendations are to be considered by the Council later this month.