Conservative councillors have been accused of misleading the public over Blackburn’s new cinema.

Earlier this month, the authority’s planning and highways committee approved the £6.5 million Reel Cinema plan on the site of the former Waves Water Fun Centre in Nab Lane, Blackburn.

The cinema firm will sign a 20-year lease and the building is expected to have a 50-year lifespan.

Conservatives on Blackburn with Darwen Council have pledged to scrap the scheme if they gain control of the council following local government elections in May.

They say the money could be spent on other priorities, with Darwen West Conservatives earmarking the restoration of Darwen’s Market Hall, regenerating Darwen’s town centre or repairing Darwen’s roads as potential alternatives.

The borough’s regeneration boss, Cllr Phil Riley, said: “Cllr Pearson said at the planning and highways committee it was an admirable idea, but Cllr Tapp says he wants to scrap it.

“It’s either admirable or a waste of money.

“I have tried to explain how this funding works. We have borrowed some money to build a cinema and if it doesn’t go ahead, we don’t borrow the money.

Cllr Riley said the projects mentioned such as filling in potholes are paid for from the revenue budget and if the cinema doesn’t go ahead, the cash would not be available to use for other projects.

This is because the scheme is being paid for through capital funding, which cannot be used on revenue costs.

He said leaflets distributed by Cllr Tapp suggesting the cinema funding could be put to other uses if the project was scrapped were misleading.

But Cllr Tapp hit back at Cllr Riley.

He said: “The leaflet is not misleading. The council should get their priorities right. They are borrowing the money for a private company to build a cinema.

“Children’s services and adult social care are struggling. The council keep going on about budget cuts but this puts that to bed.

“Their priorities are wrong in my opinion.”

Cllr Tapp said it was his understanding that the underground car park set to be built as part of the development had not been included in the £6.5 million cost of the cinema.

And he added that would bring the total cost of the development up to £9 million.

Meadowhead representative Cllr Tapp is standing for the Darwen West seat in May’s election.

Cllr Tasleem Fazal added: “There have been negative comments made by the local Tory party recently. These are the same people knocking us when we had the Cathedral Quarter built and look what a success that has been.

“The area where the cinema will go is the next step. In 2020, once the government has cut the majority of our money we are going to be worse off unless we set the foundations now.”

Now approval for the development has been granted, work on the site is expected to begin over the summer ahead of a scheduled opening in December next year.

The new cinema on the Nab Lane site will include two food and drink outlets together with a bar.