A FIERCE political row has broken out over a council's plans to build more than 3,000 new homes in a borough - four times the government's target.

Conservative regeneration spokesman Cllr Paul Marrow has branded the over-provision proposed for Blackburn with Darwen 'eye-watering'.

But the borough's Labour leader Cllr Phil Riley said it was vital to replace pre-1919 terraces with better properties to 'give residents the chance to improve living conditions for themselves and their children'.

The dispute has broken out after new figures in a monitoring report revealed that the government requires a minimum of 803 new homes in the next five years but the council is set to approve 3,355.

Cllr Marrow said the borough now has a 21 year supply of deliverable housing land when the government target is five.

The report reveals that in 2021/22 396 new homes were built across the borough, a slight decrease from 421 the previous year.

Cllr Marrow, said “The figures are eye-watering.

"I feel sorry for existing residents who are going to see much-loved greenfield land near their homes swallowed up by new development that is not necessary or justified.

"The planned level of greenfield development is a political choice taken by Labour so they can and should reverse it.

"Rank hypocrisy is on display here – on one hand the council has declared a climate emergency, but on the other it is setting about concreting over as much greenfield land as it can."

Livesey with Pleasington Conservative Cllr Mark Russell said “The council’s housebuilding agenda appears to be driven by greed for more council tax revenue rather than necessity. In my ward 619 new houses are planned to be built over the next five years. That’s 77 per cent of the current government target coming from one ward alone.

"Given these figures the current housebuilding plans in the area around Brokenstone Road and Bog Height Road are tantamount to reckless and unnecessary destruction of greenfield land."

Cllr Riley said: “More than 60 per cent of the borough’s housing stock is pre-1919 terraces and some of it is in poor condition.

“While we have a buoyant local housing market, we want to take every opportunity to develop quality housing and give residents the chance to improve living conditions for themselves and their children.

“We make no apologies for this – we want residents to live healthy and fulfilling lives and new housing plays an important part in this.”

Cllr Quesir Mahmood ,borough regeneration boss, said: “The government’s standard method for calculating local housing need has come in for much criticism,

"Our new Local Plan is based on strong, local evidence and so accurately reflects our housing needs in the borough."