A FORMER mayor has savaged council bosses for missed opportunities over an environmental health outrage at a popular Burnley cafe.

The Lancashire Telegraph revealed earlier this year how inspectors had found a number of failings with The Stables, in Towneley Park.

And the owners were later left with a legal bill of more than £10,000, after they confessed to being responsible for the filthy state of the kitchens.

But Coun John Harbour said it was a ‘disgrace’ that the situation appeared to have been known about by the council for around three years.

“The people of Burnley were not aware of it – if these problems were going on and we knew about them then we should be ashamed of ourselves,” said Coun Harbour.

Coun Peter McCann, development executive member, said the authority had tried to work with the previous owners.

It had been known there were problems with the cafe since it secured a ‘no stars’ rating from the food hygiene Scores on the Doors rating system, he added.

But officers had to wait for enforcement procedures to take effect, Coun McCann told a full council meeting.