ASYLUM seekers from overseas who want refuge in Britain may be on their way to East Lancashire under emergency measures unveiled by Blackburn MP and Home Secretary Jack Straw.

Council leaders in the area have pledged to do all they can to help Mr Straw with his plan to disperse foreign nationals who arrive on British shores.

South coast ports and London boroughs are overstrained in taking in thousands of people from all over the world as arrivals from other countries reach record levels.

And the Immigration service has warned that the system is on the verge of collapse, with applicants at Dover having to wait up to four years before their case is fully heard.

A running battle between asylum seekers and locals in Dover recently brought the issue of asylum seekers to national prominence.

Government emergency measures will soon come into force as soon as part of new immigration and asylum laws which have been passed through parliament.

The leader of Blackburn with Darwen Council, Coun Malcolm Doherty, said: "We are working with other authorities in the North West to draw up a consortium to deal with this issue.

"We showed our willingness to do our share when the Kosovars came and we are used to dealing with these issues, which makes us a suitable place to take in asylum seekers." A spokeswoman for Lancashire County Council said the authority was aware of the proposals but added: "We have as yet had no contact from the Government and we are waiting to hear more detail."

An estimated 180,000 people are expected to have claimed asylum in Britain by the end of 1999.

The county council and Blackburn with Darwen Council were at the fore of the recent operation to house refugees from Kosovo.

Several refugees have been housed at Calderstones Hospital in Whalley and two former homes for the elderly in Shadsworth and Mill Hill, Blackburn.

Some have now returned home now the war in their homeland has ended, but some remain.

Asylum seekers have to wait in Britain while immigration officials decide whether they have a genuine case to stay in the country because of threats posed to them in their homeland.

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