Lewisham councillors will debate whether they should accept bumper pay rises of nine per cent next week.

Recommendations by independent adviser for London Councils Sir Rodney Brookes include increasing the mayor's pay from £77,722 to £81,839 - a rise of more than £4,000 - along with an increase in basic councillor allowances from £9,812 to 10,703.

Cabinet members' allowances would be boosted from £15,298 to £16,610, while chairs of two committees could bag almost £4,000 in extra money if the sums are agreed.

In a report submitted to the council ahead of a meeting on September 17, Sir Rodney noted the council's current financial strains, with cuts on the horizon of around £95m over four years.

But he warned changes meant Lewisham councillors could no longer contribute to the local government pension scheme - saving the council around £110,000 - and this left them disadvantaged.

He wrote: "I am acutely conscious of the severe financial strain on the council's finances but, bearing in mind, the financial loss suffered by the withdrawl of the right to pensions and the consequential saving to the council, I recommend the basic allowance be increased to the general London level."

However, Mayor of Lewisham Sir Steve Bullock pointed to a similar review in 2010, when the council voted not to increase allowances - meaning they were frozen for seven years - and hinted the same thing might happen again.

He told News Shopper: "I won't speculate, but if you look back at what we did four years ago, I think you can reasonably infer our approach."

And the Greens' Councillor John Coughlin, the only non-Labour councillor in the borough, said: "I find it difficult to believe that any Lewisham resident would accept increases to councillors’ allowances in the current climate.

"The council is always emphasising that significant cuts will have to be made over the coming years and it is my view, and that of Lewisham Green Party, that increasing allowances in the face of such cuts would be inappropriate."