A LABOUR councillor who had undergone a hip replacement was brought to Rossendale's annual council meeting in an ambulance, so that the Deputy Mayor, Coun Eileen Kershaw, did not miss out on her role as Mayor.

And the row over who would succeed Councillor Jimmy Eaton asto the role of Mayor of Rossendale, after both the Labour group and the Conservative group put forward nominations, was eventually decided by one vote.

The Deputy Mayor Eileen Kershaw had spent a stressful few weeks waiting to hear if she would become Mayor, after the Conservatives announced they were going to propose their own member, Coun Jeffrey Cheetham, for the position.

But the nervous wait was finally over when the council voted 17-16 in favour of her receiving the civic chains.

Labour councillor Don Rishton was so determined not to miss out on the vote that a recent hip replacement was not going to stand in his way.

Coun June Forshaw, who has been a councillor for 12 years, was elected to the post of Deputy Mayor after moving that Coun Kershaw become Mayor for 2003/2004.

She said: "The ceremony has never been as bad as it was this time. The Deputy Mayor didn't know if she was going to become the Mayor so we couldn't carry on as we normally would in celebration.

"We were unsure how may votes we would have because one of our members wasn't there because he is recovering from a stroke and Edenfield Coun Don Rishton, did not want to miss the vote, so he was brought in an ambulance.

"I think steps need to be taken to stop this kind of situation happening again. It wasn't nice for the outgoing Mayor because he had the casting vote and he felt the Deputy Mayor had supported him the previous year so she should get it."

Newly-elected Mayor Coun Kershaw, 68, said: "I have lived on a a razor edge for three weeks and it was an absolute relief to hear the vote had gone in my favour. From where I was sitting I could see the Conservatives had 16 people voting and I couldn't see how many we had.

"I couldn't have a proper mayor-making and inaugural dinner, so I am hoping to have my civic service and inaugural dinner on June 21, but that date is still to be confirmed.

"The Liberal Democrat councillor voted with us. If he hadn't have I wouldn't have got it. But he was very fair and said he was voting for the deputy mayor and if it had been that the Conservative nomination was the deputy mayor he would have gone with them."

Coun Judith Driver, who proposed Coun Cheetham as Mayor said she was disappointed with the decision.

She said: "We put forward an excellent candidate and it is very sad for Rossendale people that he didn't get it, as they were the ones whothat voted for a hung council rather than a Labour council.

"I am not taking anything away from Coun Kershaw as it must have been an upsetting time for her."