BURNLEY Council has pledged to axe plans for permanent traveller sites in the borough – as long as the town’s MP can obtain confirmation from government ministers that the sites are not required.

The Labour-led council said government guidelines had effectively forced it to launch a public consultation on three possible sites, in Marlborough Street, Lawrence Avenue and Heald Road.

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However, at a full council meeting on Wednesday, Liberal Democrat councillor Gordon Birtwistle, who is also the borough’s MP, claimed the council can ditch the plans without censure.

The argument centres around a University of Salford report, which was conducted for the council and concluded there was a need for 28 permanent travellers’ pitches in the borough.

The council said this conclusion has forced it to look for possible sites, but Coun Birtwistle pointed to a line in the report’s executive summary which says ‘there is little to no evidence of significant need for permanent accommodation arising from the presence of unauthorised encampments’.

Although he acknowledged the report’s conclusions, Coun Birtwistle said this would give the council a good basis to argue there is not a need for permanent sites in the borough.

But the council rejected an amendment put forward by Coun Birtwistle, and instead unanimously agreed the following: “Our MP has stated publicly that the council does not need to provide these pitches – we therefore call on him to meet with the secretary of state at the Department for Communities and Local Government to get the government’s confirmation that the Planning Inspectorate would not challenge his view that Burnley’s Local Plan does not need to designate land for Gypsy and Traveller sites.

“The council will use this advice with a view to remove the sites from the preferred option for the Local Plan.”

After the meeting, Coun Birtwistle said: “I have an appointment with the planning minister in a couple of weeks and I’ll see what he has to say.

“But at the end of the day I’ve already spoken to ministers about this and they’ve said it’s a council decision.

“There isn’t a need for these pitches and that’s how I read the report.

“As long as the council follows the framework of the planning rules then the government won’t intervene.”

About 1,400 residents have signed a petition against proposals for any permanent traveller sites in the borough, and this was presented before the meeting at the town hall.