HAROLD WILSON wasn’t my glass of Benedictine as politicians go, but he was sharp, I’ll give him that.

At some rally back in the 60’s there was a cry from the back of the crowd. “Rubbish!” shouted a heckler.

Wilson didn’t blink: “We’ll take up your special interest in a minute, sir,” he replied.

A town council for Darwen? Well, that’s certainly the special interest of the For Darwen Party.

It’s the main plank of Tony Melia’s manifesto.

I made my “no-thanks” position clear last week but I think that, based on rough research, there will be a two-thirds majority in favour from a modest turnout of around 20 per cent.

In the past few days I’ve been looking at a similar operation in the Borough of Pendle, where they are a few months ahead of us in setting up councils for Colne and for Nelson, a town which is similar in many ways to Darwen.

In the summer of 2006 they had a parish review – they seem to have one for every few streets – and then they had roadshows to get residents’ views.

Letters were sent to all the homes in the borough and it was one vote per household.

It was a simple question: “Do you want a new Nelson Town Council?”

The Labour group on Pendle Council were opposed as they thought it would be just another level of bureaucracy as they already had Nelson and Colne area, or neighbourhood, committees.

It was May this year before councillors were finally voted on and Nelson Town Council had its first full meeting only last Wednesday.

Anyhow, last week I forecast that the FDP and their pals would hold sway on a Darwen Town Council.

Now I’m not so sure. Pendle Labour boycotted the whole thing and the new Nelson council has 10 independents and a couple of BNP members.

Out of 24 Nelson town councillors only three are also on the borough council.

So perhaps the FDP could get a nasty surprise.

Incidentally, I’m weary of hearing the moan: “We should never have gone in with Blackburn,” as though Darwen had any choice in ’74.

Few people know the old Darwen council set-up better than me.

We had our own – modestly-paid – town clerk, borough treasurer and borough engineer; our own buses and library and parks department and looked-after council houses.

Sadly, those days are long gone. Get over it.

The cost of a Darwen town council? It could spiral into anything.

The hundred grand for starters will apparently just cover two members of staff and a small corner of the information centre at what is laughingly known officially these days as ”the town hall”.

The toilets next door are almost as big. And often better used.

Meanwhile, the bus lane “plan” – anyone got a clue? – will probably get the nod from the council’s executive board when they meet before the count at the Library Theatre (6pm).

They have to press on; too much money has been thrown at it already.

Hundreds of thousands of pounds is my guess.