OPPOSITION councillors have slammed Blackburn with Darwen's ruling Labour group for spending £38,000 on a survey to find out what people think of the council.

But we believe it is right for local authorities to "listen" as much as they can.

And there is no harm at all in a council acquiring independent, scientific feedback to find out what the community wants.

But, valuable as such findings may be for the planning and targeting of council services, councillors must regard them as only one aspect of their duty to "listen."

Individually they hear, after all, the complaints and concerns of the people who live in their wards and, collectively, they are the focal point for all kinds of representations - from residents' petitions to media comment.

We have no complaints about them listening as much as they can - and this survey adds to that.

It is when they don't listen, or choose to go deaf - as perhaps was the case when recently they decided to pay no heed to 460 objections to a controversial bail hostel plan - that we should be concerned.

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