FINANCE bosses in Pendle are poised to write off nearly a quarter of a million pounds owed by Poll Tax dodgers since the early 1990s.

The community charge disappeared in 1993 and was replaced by the council tax because of its unpopularity and the difficulty local government chiefs faced in collecting it.

Since then town halls have pursued debts with Burnley, for instance, recovering hundreds of thousands of pounds each year.

Pendle, too, managed to claw back money owed but now councillors are being asked to write off £234,426 after being told the recovery process has finally been exhausted.

A report to Tuesday's meeting of the resource committee says all collection options implemented.

The report states that two years ago the entire poll tax file was passed on to an outside agency which again chased the debts on behalf of the council, by sending out letters and making doorstep collections.

Officers say there are now 361 individual cases which should now be written off.

They are also recommending councillors to write off £174,000 of business rates, involving nine firms, several of which had gone into liquidation. Thousands of people all over Britain refused to pay the community charge on principle or as part of the "Can't Pay Won't Pay" campaign which fought on behalf of people whose bills increased massively compared to the old rates.

In Blackburn and Darwen many debtors were tracked down and forced to pay.

But six years after the disappearance of the poll tax, 346 debtors remained in Blackburn and Darwen owing a total of £217,976.

After reporting that all recovery methods had been exhausted, the council wrote off the debts.