Coun Tony Dobson

‘If they don’t have any ideas, I’m pleased to give them ours’

SINCE I became leader of the Conservative group in Hyndburn, I’ve written a number of my columns about regeneration in Hyndburn and, in particular, Accrington town centre – and shared my frustration with you at the lack of interest, passion, vision I see from my Labour colleagues who control Hyndburn council.

To help me to be fair and reasonable with my criticism of the controlling group, I’ve done plenty of research over the past few months about what’s happening with other councils in Pennine Lancashire.

So, in Pendle the council is working with private enterprise spending £8.6m on a new homes project.

In the Ribble Valley, Clitheroe has a £9m market development.

In Burnley, they are creating a £15m-plus vision park for advanced manufacturing.

In Brierfield, they are creating Northern light – heralded as a new living, working, learning, leisure and cultural destination for Lancashire.

These councils are working in partnership with the Homes and Communities Agency, Lancashire county council and Lancashire’s enterprise partnership growth deal.

They have a vision and they have people who passionately care about making their area better.

The Homes and Communities Agency has billions to spend and wants to spend it in the north as we haven’t had our fair share of investment over the years – but to have the cash, councils need to create a vision and make an application to receive the money.

We in Hyndburn have done neither.

As you drive into Burnley one of the dilapidated grot spots has now been removed and on the security boards you will see ‘Burnley council working in partnership with the Homes and Community Agency’.

I haven’t seen one of those in Hyndburn for at least seven years.

Yes, it’s true we have had a reduction as a council in government spending, but so have the councils of Burnley, Blackburn, Pendle, Rossendale.

And certainly when I go to Burnley town centre as I did recently, there is no lack of ambition or vision, and they are not allowing their town centre to deteriorate.

Now, my Labour colleagues may say ‘but we are spending £3m on the new town square’, and we all have our own views on that particular project, but in essence it’s not enough.

Burnley council, which is a like-for-like, two-tier authority, has five people working in its economic regeneration section.

Hyndburn council doesn’t even have an economic regeneration section.

For far too long my Labour colleagues have blamed government spending reductions for all our problems but I can quite clearly see from all the good work done in all the other Labourcontrolled councils in Pennine Lancashire that this simply isn’t the case.

Over the next eight months the Conservative group will be putting forward a vision for Accrington town centre that is positive and proactive and we will freely give this review to our Labour colleagues, as we believe that our town centre cannot wait and needs action immediately.

If they don’t have any ideas themselves, I’m pleased to give them ours.