A UNIVERSITY for East Lancashire? Dramatically raising our region's wage levels? Spanning it with a Metrolink-style tram system? Planting millions of trees alongside main roads? Clearing thousands of old houses?

These might be big and grand ideas, but they are not ones that should daunt.

For this is precisely the kind of bold thinking that is needed to boost East Lancashire's economy, its quality of life and its environment.

For too long the small-town, piecemeal approach hindered our region's drive to assert itself, attract recognition and investment, improve living standards and secure and expand its future prosperity.

Now, for the third year in succession, the East Lancashire Partnership, combining the strengths of councils, business, health care and education in the region, shows that cobwebbed attitude is dead and buried as it sets out an exciting strategy to transform our area over the next 20 years. The initiatives were drafted at the major 'Achieving Our Vision' conference as the thrust of the partnership's goal to ensure that by 2020 East Lancashire's living standards and facilities equal those of European cities with similar populations.

And since as an entity our region is as large as many of the continent's sizeable cities -- where university-level education, modern transport systems and skilled high-wage jobs already exist -- that aim can be seen to be one that is achievable.

True, many of the ideas in the partnership's strategy are ambitious and adventurous , but none is beyond realisation -- particularly if the government and the EU's regional aid programmes are brought strongly behind these aims.

It is up to all the bodies behind the partnership, our MPs and the North West's MEPs to press for and win that support.

For like us, the government and the EU must think and act big for our region to progress to that 'big city' future that these goals aim for -- and is the tomorrow which our youngsters deserve.