EAST Lancashire MPs are split over whether the area will get a fair share of a £500million pot for housing.

Manchester and Salford will get a £125million grant to revitalise communities as part of the Pathfinder project, the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister has announced.

The £500million has been made available over the next three years to tackle areas acutely affected by low demand housing and abandonment. There are nine Pathfinder areas, including East Lancashire, bidding to the Government for a share of the cash and with Liverpool also expected to get a major chunk, there is some concern that East Lancashire may not get enough cash.

Leader of Blackburn with Darwen, Sir Bill Taylor, said: "We have had no indication that just because Manchester has got their bid together this will affect ours."

Stuart Caddy, leader of Burnley Council was also upbeat. He said: "Manchester was well down the road to securing this money and we are working hard in East Lancashire to secure ours."

But Nigel Evans, MP for the Ribble Valley, said it would be a big mistake if East Lancashire towns and some rural areas in need of revitalising came second best to large cities. Mr Evans said: "I think it will be a huge mistake if the majority of the money goes to large cities and places like Blackburn, Burnley and Hyndburn, where there are huge housing needs, are forgotten. The Government should think hard before making these promises to make sure the money is equally distributed."

A bid to the Government from the East Lancashire Pathfinder project -- Elevate East Lancashire -- is expected by the end of the year. The consortium of local councils, which includes Blackburn with Darwen, Hyndburn, Rossendale, Burnley and Pendle, want £680million over ten years to solve East Lancashire's chronic problems with poor-quality Victorian terraced housing that is often unsaleable or unfit to live in.

Labour MPs Greg Pope, Hyndburn, and Peter Pike, Burnley, have vowed they will work to ensure East Lancashire gets as much cash as possible. Mr Pope said the announcement yesterday. Mr Pikesaid: "Manchester is that much more advanced with their work and their problems are different to ours."