A MAN who helped set up a huge ecstasy deal has been told by top judges that he deserves every day of his sentence.

Simon Day, 37, of Walmesley Street, Rishton, arranged a meeting between two men one of whom was later found with a haul of 20,000 ecstasy tablets.

Day, who at first denied all knowledge of the deal, was jailed for eight years in total at Lancaster Crown Court last October when he pleaded guilty to being concerned in the supply of class A drugs.

London's Criminal Appeal Court yesterday dismissed Day's challenge, ruling the jail term was "not manifestly excessive".

Lord Justice Dyson, sitting with Mr Justice Grigson and Judge Sir Douglas Brown, said: "Day must have known that there was a large drugs deal which had been facilitated."

Day was caught after police carried out surveillance on co-accused David Anthony Stewart in July, 2004. Stewart led them to Day after they met in a car park near a cemetery.

When Day left the car park, Stewart met another man and Stewart was later stopped by police and found to have 20,000 ecstasy tablets in his car boot.

Day was then arrested by police, but Stewart later absconded and is still at large.

Lord Justice Dyson said Day denied knowing what the meeting between Stewart and the other man was about, but eventually pleaded guilty shortly before his trial.

Day was given seven years for the ecstasy offence and was also ordered to serve 12 months of an earlier sentence for conspiracy to supply class B drugs for which he was jailed for six years in April 2000 from which he had been released early.

Dismissing Day's challenge, Lord Justice Dyson said: "Day was the middle-man who introduced Stewart to the other man."