MP Greg Pope has intervened to try and persuade county councillors to veto plans to massively increase operations at a landfill site.

The Labour backbencher is deeply concerned about proposals by waste disposal firm Sita, Marshalls Clay Products and Park Royal to expand the capacity of Whinney Hill tip, which would increase the annual amount of waste dumped at the Clayton-le-Moors site from 580,000 tonnes to 660,000 tonnes and increase the number of lorries using the site from 300 a day to 725.

The three firms want to roll existing planning permission into a single one for the next 40 years.

Hyndburn MP Mr Pope said: "I don't want Hyndburn to become the dumping ground for the whole of the North West and I believe the use of Henry Street as the access route would be madness.

"I am very worried that Lancashire County Council could make a terrible mistake and I have urgently considered my views and the views of the local residents before making a decision."

Geoffrey Wheatman, chairman of local action group Residents of Enfield, Altham, Clayton and Huncoat, said: "We welcome the intervention of Mr Pope."