A significant share of a multimillion pound Government grant to fix potholes should be allocated to the county, says the leader of Surrey County Council.

The Government has released £168m for the Pothole Fund and is encouraging councils to pledge the number of potholes they aim to repair by March 2015 as they bid for extra funding.

Recent floods caused £15m worth of damage to about 2,500 Surrey roads, and county council leader David Hodge hoped the county would benefit.

Mr Hodge said: “Given that Surrey contributes more in taxation to the UK economy than anywhere other than the City of London, keeping our county moving is important not only locally but also nationally.

“And it’s time our residents and businesses saw some return for this contribution, especially because Surrey’s major roads also carry twice as much traffic as the national average.”