A TOWN centre trader who is fighting for the right to display an 'A' board outside his shop has had the board confiscated.

David Wilson said the board was the best way of letting customers know that his shop, Naturally Yours, was there.

But the sign has been impounded by Blackburn with Darwen Council and Mr Wilson now faces a bill of £50 to get it back.

Mr Wilson, who shares premises with a sculptor and a unit selling vintage clothing, said when the council clampdown on 'A' boards started he agreed to take his board in.

"But then I read that there was a suggestion that each case be treated individually so I put it back out.

"It was only up for four days, then the council came round and took it away."

Mr Wilson, who operates from premises on Lower Cockroft, Blackburn, said: "It is a British tradition to put 'A' boards out. Mine wasn't blocking anything. "If it was I would have moved it.

"All I want to do is talk to the council about the situation but they don't want to."

He said business dropped off drastically when he took the board in and picked up again when it was put back out.

"I have only been in the town centre for three months and Christmas is a crucial time for a new business like this," he said.

A council spokeswoman said Mr Wilson was breaking the law by putting the board out and any illegal boards would be confiscated.

"The siting of obstructions by local traders is illegal. The council has a duty to uphold the law and ensure that the highway is safe and clear at all times," she said.

"Where accidents occur as a result of these obstructions it is the council, not the shopkeeper, who is taken to court and any bill for damages must be paid for by council tax payers."

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