ORDINARY home owners in East Lancashire will get the chance to tell Housing Minister Lord Falconer of the problems of derelict and decaying Victorian terrace properties in the area when he visits on Friday.

This pledge was given by Hyndburn MP Greg Pope who originally persuaded the peer to come to the area.

And fter visiting the Hyndburn area Lord Falconer will go on to Rossendale and Darwen where local Labour MP Janet Anderson will show him round similar problem areas in her constituencies.

In June this year Labour MP Greg Pope told the House of Commons: "We must not turn our backs on these problems, and the housing minister should come and see for himself the plight of my constituents."

Following the speech the former government whip made representations at the highest level to get Lord Falconer to come to Accrington and see for himself the problems caused by large amounts of low value, terrace homes that are privately owned and too expensive to repair more than 100 years later than they were built, often on the cheap.

Lord Falconer, a close friend of Prime Minister Tony Blair, also responsible for regional economic regeneration, will tour parts of west Accrington to see how areas can be improved following government and local authority grants.

He will also see areas of dereliction where houses have been abandoned and property prices have plummeted.

Mr Pope will also ensure that Lord Falconer meets local people informally to discuss the nature of the problems and what the government can do to help.

Hyndburn has around 10,000 privately owned properties officially designated "unfit to live in" which were built before the First World War, thousands of other properties which are deteriorating and hundreds of empty and abandoned homes.

While in Accrington, Lord Falconer will also meet the East Lancashire Chamber of Commerce at Mr Pope's invitation to discuss a new bid for government cash for a major environmental enterprise project in the area.

Mr Pope said: "I am delighted that Charlie Falconer accepted my invitation to visit Hyndburn. I am determined that the housing problems my constituents face are not forgotten, and the minister's visit is an important milestone in this campaign."

Both local MPs and the government accept that current grant arrangements to private home owners through the local authority are inadequate to tackle the massive decaying homes problem throughout East Lancashire.