THE woman in charge of standing up for the rights of older people in East Lancashire today accused Health Secretary Alan Milburn of discriminating against pensioners by not offering them breast screening.

County Councillor Dorothy Westell, appointed to the "champion" post by Lancashire County Council, says moves to extend breast screening are welcome but do not go far enough. Health authorities nationwide have been given a April 2004 deadline to extend invitations to women up to and including age 70 to regular breast-screens. The age limit is currently 64.

But women older than 70 will not receive invitations, although they will be granted a breast screen on request.

The move is despite the fact that research has shown that the likelihood of a woman getting breast cancer increases as they get older.

Around 80 per cent of women with the cancer are over 50 and post-menopausal

County Councillor Westell, who represents Accrington at County Hall, said: "The age extension is a step in the right direction but is still not good enough. I know that women over 70 can request a screen, but I believe they should have an automatic invitation -- otherwise, people tend to put these things off.

"We know already that only three in four women takes up the offer of a screening, so there are already more than enough women who are at unnecessary risk."

Lancashire's three screening units are expected to beat the target date for extending screening invites to women up to age 70.

East Lancashire's unit should be ready by January 2003 and the other two units should be ready by April 2003. A spokesman for the Department of Health said no comment could be made until the letter had been received.