BURNLEY Council and the town's MP are seeking government cash to help keep jobs in the borough despite coronavirus.

Their move follows fears for the aerospace and automotive sectors after the Covid-19 pandemic.

Burnley council has processed and distributed 1800 business support grants totalling £20 million of government cash.

It has also established the Burnley Together community hub which has handled almost 7,000 contacts from people and distributed almost 3,500 food parcels.

Now the council is planning for the post virus future.

It is consulting with businesses to understand the impact of the pandemic and the support they need; advising business on making their work environments Covid safe and working with town centre businesses to enable them to reopen Monday.

Burnley Council leader Cllr Charlie Briggs said: “We need to work with businesses, partners and the voluntary sector to support the transition from the immediate crisis through to full recovery.

“Looking beyond that to future recovery, the council is working with the Lancashire Enterprise Partnership (LEP) and the East Lancashire Chamber of Trade to develop and lobby for support for major employment sectors in the town.

“I have met with our MP Antony Higginbotham to start the process of lobbying for Government support for Burnley and will continue to do so over the coming weeks and months.

“The council will be working with businesses, partners and the voluntary sector that will build on the work undertaken so far and incorporate it into a wider recovery plan for Burnley."