A CHURCH plan to burn candles in thousands of homes to celebrate the New Millennium has been slammed as a life-threatening hazard, by the fire service.

The Church of England is behind the scheme to deliver candles to houses across the county during celebrations.

But the idea has backfired after Lancashire Fire Brigade bosses expressed concern.

Church leaders have emphasised the Christian importance of the celebrations and have been looking at ways of getting the message across.

Many clerics believe it is being lost in the rush to arrange parties and celebrations.

Their ideas include delivering gospels to homes, special services and the controversial candle. But the fire brigade has warned about the dangers of using lighted candles in the home. The rise in popularity of scented and decorative candles has been blamed for several fires over the last 12 months.

Lancashire spokesman John Taylor said: "In recent months there have been a number of fires started by candles and if they were distributed to homes then it stands to reason the hazards would be increased."

Martyn Halsall, a spokesman at Blackburn Cathedral, said: "There was some concern about the safety of the candles and we have taken that on board. We have had a special candle designed which extinguishes itself when it falls over.

"The New Millennium is all about Christianity, after all we are celebrating the 2,000th anniversary of the birth of Christ."

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