A ROW has erupted after Hyndburn Council pulled out of a partnership with the county council.

Hyndburn said that the Lancashire Local meetings, a joint venture between the county and district councils, were a "waste of time".

Hyndburn Council leader Peter Britcliffe said that the quarterly meetings were "toothless and useless".

But a county council boss said that Hyndburn's decision had meant councillors had "walked away from decisions on matters of vital importance".

Lancashire Locals were set up three years ago in all of the districts of the county as a way of sharing power on decisions including highways, safety schemes, residents' parking schemes and bus services.

They have an equal number of county councillors and district councillors and the public are invited to attend and have their say.

But in Hyndburn the local council has now pulled out in a row over the make-up of the board.

The six local county councillors, all Labour, were expected to be joined by four Conservative and two Labour councillors from Hyndburn.

But Coun Britcliffe said he wanted to even up the balance between the parties and nominated six of his Conservative members. This was rejected by the county council which said that it was not a fair reflection of the make-up of Hyndburn Council.

County Councillor Doreen Pollitt, county council deputy leader and Accrington West representative, said: "It is sad for local people that Hyndburn Council has, in effect, ended its participation in Lancashire Local and walked away from decisions on matters of vital importance.

"We have appealed to them to balance their nominations as sharing power is at the heart of Lancashire Local.

"We have appealed to them to think again, but they have refused to do so.

"It means meetings about county council services in Hyndburn will still go ahead, but only with Hyndburn members of Lancashire County Council."

Coun Britcliffe said: "They have excluded us. We wouldn't dream of telling them who to nominate to sit on the committee but they are telling us who to nominate.

"It is supposed to be a partnership but they are telling us what to do.

"The Lancashire Local meetings are a fairly useless body anyway and just a PR exercise.

"We at Hyndburn Council are happy to work with our colleagues at the county council but will not be told what to do.

"By walking away from the meetings it will free up councillors and officers to devote themselves to other projects."