I COULD never quite understand how the Blackburn with Darwen ruling partnership came close to disintegrating over the wording of the referendum question on a Darwen town council.

The For Darwen Party wanted to keep it simple. Do you want a Darwen Town Council?

Coalition colleagues wanted to mention that the council was also setting up something called a neighbourhood board. Didn’t seem much to drive the FDP to the barricades.

If the 13-strong council gets off the ground after the Big Vote (Thursday, October 16) it will probably be composed largely of sitting councillors and their hangers-on.

The FDP will hold sway and will probably then have little interest in anything north of the motorway.

The old Blackburn borough might as well be lying on the murky banks of the upper Orinoco, high in the mysterious Matopos hills south of Bulawayo or gathering dust in the fly-blown sand bowl of Aden for all they will care.

Yes, been there, done that, got the T-shirts.

I was wondering, incidentally, how Darwen folk would react to a successful Blackburn party which had no interest in anything on our side of the motorway.

It would sure be a vote winner over in Queen’s Park, Mill Hill and Shadsworth.

The-Blackburn-First-Stuff-Darwen Party which would, in name, rival the best action group I ever came across: The-Best-Party-I’ve-Ever-Been-To Party. Pure class. Got my vote.

The referendum issue is all a bit vague isn’t it?

What if only a few hundred bother to vote?

What sort of percentage in favour is needed for a town, or parish, council to get the nod? And ther cost? £100,000 for starters!

This is next week’s Big Question:

l Neighbourhood boards will be established in Blackburn with Darwen; in addition you want a town council in Darwen? Something for nothing. Why not? Can’t be any worse. Go on then.

For 40%. Against 30%. Don’t care 30%.

But it could have been loaded a dozen different ways. Just a couple of examples: l You don’t want a Darwen parish council do you?

Ooh, er. Dunno. No, don’t think we do. Do we?

For 10%. Against 60%. Don’t care 30%.

l Do you want a costly Darwen town council as well as Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council and a new neighbourhood board and the Town Centre Partnership and neighbourhood voices and parish councils and community groups and and anything else?

Leave it out. Haven’t we got enough to put up with? No thanks.

For 0%. Against 90%. Don’t care 10%.

As Tony Melia said recently: “Ask the right questions and you’ll get the answers you want.”

My view? Too much time and money is already spent on con-sul-ta-tions and talking-shops.

Cut the waffle, chop the myriad of meaningless council jobs that have sprung up and concentrate on cleaning up the place and giving back to the town the pride it used to have.

A Darwen town council? No thanks.