A HIGH-TECH voting system has prompted outrage after town hall bosses revealed it was being installed in a bid to speed up long council meetings.

Blackburn with Darwen Council is spending £50,000 on the electronic key-pad system, similar to those used on television game shows such as 'Who Wants To Be A Millionaire', and improvements to the sound system in the council chamber.

The results could be displayed on a giant screen, or each councillor could have a monitor in front of their desk.

The council's opposition Labour group has branded the move a waste of money, but the ruling coalition said Labour's tactics were making council meetings drag on too long.

Mark Wallace, of the national Taxpayers' Alliance campaign group, said: "This is absurd.

"The system of simply counting who has actually voted has worked for centuries, and is good enough for the UK parliament.

"So why not Blackburn with Darwen Council?

"Moreover, this does not come cheap. Money that could be spent on roads, libraries and care for the elderly should not be spent adding high-tech gadgets to the council chamber."

One full council meeting in the summer finished at 12.30am, and councillors have risked being locked in the Mall car park opposite the town hall, which has started closing at 11pm.

For Darwen party leader Coun Tony Melia claimed Labour's demands for all 64 councillors to vote individually were making meetings - which start at 6pm - go on "unnecessarily late".

He said: "It (the equipment) will be a big improvement, and make things run quicker.

"Council meetings used to finish at about 8pm, but the Labour party has been making things difficult for everyone.

"There has been no reason at all to have named votes on certain issues, but they have been doing it because they can."

But Labour leader Coun Kate Hollern, who lost control of the council in May, hit back.

She said: "Named votes have always happened, and are vital to show who is voting for what.

"Nobody wants to stop longer than they have to, but it's important to spend your time in meetings properly.

"There's no point in pushing things through just to go home earlier."

Different models are being considered, and the final model may be decided by a council vote.

The £50,000 has been set aside in the council's 2008/09 capital budget, as part of its £3.3million resources portfolio.