THE former Mayor and Mayoress of Padiham have been forced off the town council because of their refusal to work with the town clerk.

Coun Granville Lord, a founder member of Padiham Council, had not attended any town council meetings since he stepped down as Mayor earlier this year.

Under local government rules, any councillor who does not attend meetings for six months without sending apologies can be disqualified from the council.

His wife, Coun Pat Lord, also refused to attend any monthly meetings, although she has been to working groups.

The fate of both councillors was decided last night when fellow councillors voted to disqualify them.

The Lords have refused to work with town clerk Elizabeth Bolton following a serious disagreement. The Lords wrote to all Padiham town councillors explaining the situation.

Coun said: "This was a matter of principle for us. Neither of us was prepared to resign because we had done nothing wrong, but after what happened we found it impossible to work with Mrs Bolton.

"Being thrown off the council is a disappointment, but we can still carry on doing what we do for the good of the community. Just because we are no longer councillors does not mean we should stop trying to make a difference."