A LEADING Darwen councillor has failed in his bid to have a three per cent rent rise for stallholders on the town's market to be abandoned.

Blackburn with Darwen Council's Liberal Democrat group leader Coun Paul Browne criticised the move, saying traders had already had a bad deal from the town hall.

But Labour councillors hit back saying the market was thriving and a three per cent rent rise would not force traders to leave.

Traders had submitted a petition to the council's regeneration committee asking for the rent rise to be "pegged" because there are already eight empty stalls on the market and a rise would not encourage anybody to take them up.

Coun Browne said: "Traders have had a bad deal from this council in the last twelve months. They have been let down badly

"When I go down on to that market on a Saturday it is like a ghost town. Accrington's market is smaller than Darwen's yet when I go there it is a different story altogether. I would ask for rents not to be increased."

Labour Coun Mike Barrett replied: "This is not a picture of Darwen market I recognise. I go there on most Saturday mornings or afternoons and it certainly never looks like a ghost town to me.

Coun Andy Kay, the Labour chairman of the regeneration committee, added: "This is not an onerous rent increase and we still have a firm commitment to the success of Darwen market."

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