A LAST-DITCH attempt to force the borough council to reconsider its controversial decision to knock down Darwen’s Three Day Market has been launched.

Councillor David Foster, backed by five Liberal Democrat and Tory Darwen councillors, has forced Town Hall bosses to set up a special committee to review how the verdict on the three day market’s future was made.

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If the Labour dominated ‘scrutiny’ body decides, as campaigners believe, the procedures were flawed, Blackburn with Darwen Council will have to abandon the demolition plans and go back to square one.

It’s ruling executive board, which rubber stamped the decision to knock it down in February, will then have to restart the whole process of considering whether it can be repaired and revived instead of knocked down.

Campaigners trying to save the Croft Street three day market welcomed the move.

To date almost 3,000 people have signed a petition calling fort the demolition decision to be reversed.

But borough council bosses claimed its future was unviable because immediate repairs are estimated at £800,000.

Brenda Cronshaw, a trader on the three day market, said: “If they do this properly they will send it back to square one.

“This decision was flawed.

“We want a three day market not anything else.”

Cllr Foster has been backed his his wife Karimeh, fellow Liberal Democrat Roy Davies, new Marsh House councillor Neil Slater, and Fernhurst Tories Jacqui and Julie Slater.

He will ask the committee to quash the existing decision on the ground that: no consultation took place on the proposed demolition; no alternative ways of running the market were looked at; and there was no study on the impact of the market on the rest of Darwen Town Centre.

Cllr Foster said: “This is the last thing we can do to question the principal of the decision before it is considered by the planning committee.

“If the Call In Committee does its job properly I believe it must send it back to the drawing board and force the executive board to think again.”

The special ‘Call In’ committee of six Labour councillors, two Conservative and one Liberal Democrat will meet on Thursday, June 30.

It will sit with a legal, or ‘quasi-judicial’, responsibility to ensure all the procedures involved in the executive boards decision were lawful and correct.

Darwen Tory MP Jake Berry said: “I support this action taken by Conservative and Lib Dem councillors.

“There are many questions that need answering by Blackburn with Darwen Council.

“What are they going to replace the building with, where are the traders going to move to and why have they spent millions on Blackburn Market but left Darwen’s Market buildings to fall into disrepair?”

Cllr Phil Riley, borough regeneration boss, said: “This is a quasi judicial process and similar to a House of Commons Select Committee.

“The committee has a responsibility to impartially review the process by which the decision was made to make sure it was all proper and legal.

“If they decide it is we can go ahead and it makes further challenge more difficult, if not they send it back to the executive board to start again.

“Cllr Foster will put his case and I will put mine.

“This is the final opportunity within the council process to challenge this decision.

“I am confident that everything the council has done is correct.”

Cllr Jacqui Slater said: “If the committee fulfils its responsibilities and does the job impartially, they will order the council to go back to square one.

“In view of the Labour domination of the committee, I am not optimistic.”

Three day trader Ms Cronshaw added: “But as the committee is Labour dominated, I am not hopeful.”