THE billionaire Issa brothers are investing more than £5million in their iconic new mosque planned for Blackburn.

EG Group founders Mohsin and Zuber have revealed more details of the scale of their proposed Muslim religious and community centre.

Their charitable Issa Foundation last month submitted plans for the new building with a dome and two minarets on the recently-vacated site of Westholme School’s former infant and first school to Blackburn with Darwen Council.

Now it has revealed that it will cost around £5million to build if given planning permission and will encourage people of all faiths to visit and tour the building when opened.

As well as a prayer hall it will include a community centre offering services to local people of all backgrounds including parent and child care, bereavement counselling and funeral services. The centre and mosque will be dedicated to ‘promoting respect, diversity and better understanding of different cultures’, they said.

A spokesman for the Issa Foundation said: “The Issa Foundation is delighted to have submitted plans for a new place of worship and community centre for the people of Blackburn with Darwen.

“Communities play an even more important role during challenging times such as these, and we are very pleased to be able to do our part to ensure the wider local community will have much needed new facilities to meet their religious and social needs.”

Chairman of the Lancashire Council of Mosques Maulana Rafiq Sufi said: “This mosque will be good for the community and a real asset to the whole of Blackburn. The Issa bothers do a lot of charitable work in their home town and this is another aspect of that.”

Cllr Phil Riley, Blackburn with Darwen Council’s regeneration boss said: “This is going to be excellent. It is major investment in the area.

“It is going to add something to Blackburn’s architectural heritage at a key gateway to the town.

“We are very pleased at the Issa brothers' continued interest in their home town and at the wider community focus of the development.”

The mosque at the junction of Preston New Road, Billinge End Road and Buncer Lane will use contemporary Islamic architecture with arched windows, two minarets and a dome.