ESSEX will get £5.3million from the Government to plug potholes across the county.

The higher-than-expected payout was announced on Wednesday by Chancellor George Osborne as part of this year’s Budget measures.

Yesterday, the Department for Transport confirmed the figures for each council, including £286,546 and £340,741 respectively for unitary councils Southend and Thurrock, on top of the £5.3million for the county council.

Mr Osborne announced £100million would be provided for councils across the country, on top of £100million already earmarked last month to combat the problem.

The grant will be welcomed by motorists, who have suffered from crater-sized potholes and cracked road surfaces for months.

Like much of the country, Essex was hit hard by the big freeze and heavy snow in December, which wrecked roads when the thaw came.

Since then, councils have been battling to get the roads fixed, but have suffered because of less cash compared to previous years.

An Essex County Council spokesman said: “The council has already pledged to invest £4million to fix potholes and other damage to restore our road network to its pre-winter condition.

“The council has mobilised its teams across the county to carry out repairs as quickly and efficiently as possible.

“More than 250 potholes are being repaired a day.”

Report potholes by going to www.essex.gov.uk or by calling 0845 6037631.