Leader comes under fire for giving scheme backing
HYNDBURN council leader Miles Parkinson came under fire from angry residents at a public meeting after voicing his support for Accrington Stanley Community Trust’s sports hub scheme.
Coun Parkinson told the St Joseph’s Church meeting the scheme would help reduce council maintenance costs and provide £2 million of extra investment into borough sporting facilities.
Responding to him, one angry resident said: “You have been voted by the people of this town to represent them, but you are more interested in representing companies.”
Another added: “The Labour party slogan is ‘for the many not the few’, but you are not supporting the many, you are supporting the few.”
But Coun Parkinson denied that any decision had already been made by the council over the plans, citing the various hurdles the proposals must get through before reaching the authority. He told the meeting: “There are three things which must be got over. The trust have to satisfy Sports England criteria, then Fields in Trust and then they will have to satisfy the borough solicitor on the deeds of the land.
“If they can clarify all them then they will have to submit a planning application and have to satisfy the statutory providers including the highways authority, district council, plus residents who could also chip in with their views.
“My view is I’m supporting it. You elect people to office to make difficult decisions and I make those week in, week out, and I will go off what is best for the area.
“It’s £2 million investment, it’s improving the playing fields for all the user groups and the council hasn’t got the money to get them to that level and to have a pavilion which is suitable. It’s a playing field which should be used more.”
Coun Parkinson said the proposals for Higham’s Playing Fields follow similar applications made in recent years for council land in Rishton and Great Harwood which have been leased to local football clubs.
He said there are 70,000 people living in Hyndburn and claimed there are ‘just as many if not more’ supporting the proposals.
Milnshaw councillor Paul Cox said he wanted to see the final plans from the trust before making a decision. He told the meeting: “I personally feel that until they come forward with their plans and show me what they are proposing to do I think that we are all jumping the gun a little bit. I think a lot of the things discussed tonight is about access to the site, parking and lighting.
“I have listened to all the points that everyone has raised and why they oppose this development and it’s important that every single one of those are addressed and discussed.”