THE opposition leader of Hyndburn Borough Council has come in for fierce criticism after forwarding a recommendation which could see greenbelt land used by travelling fun fairs.

Coun Peter Britcliffe passed a resolution to reallocate Heyes playing field, Oswaldtwistle, for recreational use during a meeting of the town's council.

Coun Britcliffe said the resolution was an attempt to protect the fields which he believed were earmarked for housing but members of the borough council's planning committee were furious because the area falls within Hyndburn's greenbelt.

Coun Tim O'Kane, who holds the portfolio for planning at Hyndburn Council, said: "The resolution sent by the Oswaldtwistle Area Council shows Councillor Britcliffe's total misunderstanding of how planning works in Hyndburn.

"Heyes Playing Fields are within greenbelt, and always have been, which is the highest level of protection we can give. What he is asking me to do is downgrade them to recreational.

"If I were to do that, within months an applicant would come forward with a recreational usage planning application that the council would find difficult to refuse because the applicant could always win at appeal.

"Recreational usage means pigeon shooting, motocross or even hare coursing. It could be used up to 14 days a year as a fairground. I wonder what residents would think of those on their doorstep?"

Coun Britcliffe said the point of the meeting was to reassure residents that rumours about Lancashire County Council selling the land for development were untrue. He said: "There has obviously been a slip up and I have to take my share of the blame but the intention was to recommend the playing fields were used as playing fields. If I slipped up, then others did, too. I thought the fields were marked for secondary housing but it's the allotments next to them, not the fields.

"There have been cutbacks to the Area Council staff and there is not the same time for research. Because of pressure the administration staff did not check on the actual usage before the meeting. Representatives from LCC who own the land were there and didn't correct me."

He said the matter would be resolved and re-worded at the next Oswaldtwistle Area Council meeting but council leader Ian Ormerod said the resolution had already gone through the system and could not be altered for six months.

He said: "That site is greenbelt because anything less than that makes it vulnerable. I suggest it is time Coun Britcliffe started doing work as a councillor. The information on site allocations is readily available and as chairman of Oswaldtwistle Area Council he should have checked it himself."