A POLITICAL couple who pull in more than £40,000 for their work as councillors have described the job as “a full-time commitment with modest rewards”.

Husband and wife team Tim and Julie Young represent St Andrews ward on Colchester Council, with each receiving a £6,316 allowance.

Mr Young earns a further £11,370 as the borough’s councillor responsible for housing and community safety and £5,000 as a non-executive director for NHS North East Essex.

Mrs Young collects £11,500 as the sole Labour member of Essex County Council.

The couple have defended their allowances after it emerged fellow husband and wife team Neil Stock and Sarah Candy receive more than £90,000 a year for roles at Tendring Council, Essex County Council and NHS North East Essex.

Mother-of-three Mrs Young said: “We do not take the money and sit back. We are very active in our community.

“Greenstead is a high need area and we are available 24 hours a day to help people, hold regular advice surgeries, do a large amount of casework and support community groups.

“The allowances we get cover our expenses and pay for our time. Without them, we wouldn’t be able to support as many residents as we do.”

The councillor roles are full-time jobs for Mr and Mrs Young, with both doing consultancy for the Improvement and Development Agency for Local Government, helping to share best practice between councils.

They both previously worked for Royal London Insurance and took redundancy when the firm moved out of Colchester in 2004.

Mrs Young said: “Tim held down a portfolio when he had a job, and would work nine to five and then go up to the Town Hall for evening meetings.“ Mr Young said he works 70 to 80 hours a week.

He said: “Being a councillor is more than a full-time job and I think we both give value for money to our constituents.”