A COUNCIL boss’s failure to meet his targets for building new and affordable homes has been branded ‘disastrous’.

Blackburn with Darwen regeneration boss, Cllr Phil Riley, was marked ‘Red’ for failure on key performance measures for developing houses in an official report to the borough’s executive board.

In 2016/2017 his portfolio was tasked to deliver 300 new homes but only 268 were provided and 167 of which were empty properties brought back into use.

Between October 1 and March 31 just 25 were finished and ready to occupy.

For the same 12 months, Cllr Riley should have overseen the building of 60 affordable houses but only 30 were completed, none in the last six months.

His Tory Shadow Cllr Derek Hardman said: “To miss his targets and be marked ‘Red’ in a performance review for his own Labour-dominated executive board is disastrous.

“Cllr Riley and the borough have set overambitious targets for housebuilding, especially at the luxury end to bring in council tax revenue, and are consistently failing to meet them.

“We have repeatedly warned they would not build these homes even before current problems on the housing market.

“For a Labour council to perform so badly in providing affordable homes for ordinary working people is particularly poor.”

Cllr David Foster, leader of the council Liberal Democrat group, said: “This performance is shambolic and has been for some years.

“He needs to concentrate on building affordable homes and bringing vacant properties back into use.”

Cllr Riley said: “We have been set an ambitious target by the government to build 9,000 homes by 2025, 4,500 of them executive-style properties.

“It is rich of Tory and Liberal Democrat councillors to criticise our performance when they have opposed nearly every housing development.

“It takes time to bring forward proposals, get them through the planning process and then build them.

“Properties on the Wainhomes NW part of Livesey Green are now ready for sale and occupation and work is going ahead at Parsonage Road and Greenfields..

“We have affordable housing schemes under way at Shorey Bank and Mill Hill.”

He added that sites at Griffin and Alaska Street had been earmarked for more affordable properties in the future.