BLACKBURN with Darwen Council is one of the ten local authorities in England hardest hit by Whitehall grant cuts.

Research by Newcastle City Council shows that Blackburn was the sixth in the ten worst affected by the financial austerity measures brought in by the government.

All are Labour, with the ten least-affected run by the Conservatives, or Tory/Liberal Democrat coalitions.

Borough Labour leader Kate Hollern said: “The facts speak for themselves.

“These cuts are unfair and are not based on need.”

Local government minister Brandon Lewis said claims that the cuts were politically targeted were “baseless”.