A COUNTY councillor at the centre of allegations of forgery over election expenses has been voted leader of the Labour Party at County Hall and is set to take over leadership of the county in May.

Following the announcement by Lancashire County Council, leader John West he is to step down from May, Frank McKenna was chosen to succeed him by fellow members of the party.

Following his appointment, County Coun McKenna dismissed the controversy which had resulted in the arrest of himself and fellow County Councillor John Fillis over alleged discrepancies in Labour Party funding. He said no charges had been brought.

He said: "That appears to have gone into the ground now. Those allegations were malicious and peddled by my political opponents, albeit those within the Labour Party. Even at their worst, those allegations never suggested we had any personal gain. I don't think it would be a great issue in people's minds."

He said his election showed he had the "support and confidence" of the local Labour Party members.

County Coun McKenna, who was last year voted leader of the North West Regional Assembly (NWRA) and has called in the past for a devolved government for the North West, said he was looking forward to the additional challenge of leading the county council.

He said he thought the two roles were 'complementary' and added: "It's my intention to continue in both jobs until at least the Annual General Meeting of the NWRA in July."