IT is regrettable that Michelle Bryan has allowed herself to be persuaded by hunting apologists like P Newton that foxes need to be controlled; for that is merely an excuse that is given to justify this pursuit. Indeed in the 18th and early 19th centuries
THE benefits agency inquiry office in Barnoldswick will now shut on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. Instead of opening five mornings a week, the drop-in public caller office will now open Mondays and Fridays only. But hours will be extended to 9.30am
COLLEGES face disruption tomorrow when lecturers stage a one-day strike. Members of NATHFE - the National Association of Teachers in Further and Higher Education - at Blackburn College and Nelson and Colne College voted to take action over pay. Blackburn
A VILLAGE school headteacher will not face any charges for the incident which led him to stay away from school. The Crown Prosecution Service has announced that Philip McDermott will not face criminal charges following a single allegation concerning classroom
CHANCELLOR Kenneth Clarke was today branded a Scrooge by a leading campaigner for pensioners' rights. Senior citizens in East Lancashire will see some benefits from the pre-election Budget, but there was no early Christmas present. Kevin Durkin, Age Concern's
WORKERS at Blackburn's Royal Ordnance Factory were stunned by the bombshell announcement of 275 job losses. The shock news was broken to senior trade union officials by the site director, David Walton. ROF management was aiming to reduce the 2,000-strong
FINANCE bosses warned that devastating cuts in public spending would mean misery for tens of thousands of Lancashire people. The grim forecast followed Environment Secretary Michael Heseltine's announcement of how much county and district councils can
GRAHAM Knowles, the Haslingden amateur and Lancashire second XI player, has signed for Prestwich Cricket Club in the Lancashire County League. Knowles smashed the Lancashire League amateur batting record in June with a tremendous 183 not out against Rawtenstall
POLICE are opposing moves by a Darwen nightclub to stage all night "raves" because of fears over drug-taking and drug- dealing. The owners of Kazy's Bar have applied to Blackburn Council for permission to open all night on Saturdays. Andy Wright, the
BED and furniture giant Silentnight Holdings is today flying high - literally and metaphorically-and celebrating its 50th birthday in style. The Colne-based firm, one of East Lancashire's biggest employers, is taking 100 customers and past and present
FORMER Burnley fire chief Leslie Thomas died yesterday after collapsing at home with a suspected heart attack. Mr Thomas, 73, was head of Burnley fire service for four years before being appointed assistant chief officer for Lancashire County Fire Brigade
REGARDING the comments about the British aircraft industry. It is more than 10 years since the TV series 'All our working lives,' on the decline of British industry, looked at aircraft manufacture and showed bad shopfloor practice of a type I had never
FRAUD-BUSTERS in Blackburn and Accrington have saved £2.5 million in six months this year. The amazing figure has been revealed in the Commons by East Lancashire Tory MP Nigel Evans. He said information from the benefits agency investigators in the two
A "KILLER gas" alert has gone out in the battle to halt house building plans in Burnley. The newly-formed Lowerhouse Residents Association say building on a former tipping site could unlock methane, arsenic and other toxic fumes - creating danger to local
A WOMAN pushing a child in a pushchair was found dying in a council estate alleyway today. And this afternoon a major investigation was underway to piece together what happened between Keats Close and Slater Avenue, Colne, just after 8.30am. Ambulancemen
Rovers Res 3 Sheff Wed Res 1 A GOOD blend of youth and experience carried Rovers to another Pontin's League Premier Division win in a competitive game at Deepdale last night. It was particularly pleasing to see youngsters such as Damien Duff, James Thomas
A YOUNG girl was seriously injured after being dragged under the wheel of a car in a road accident. Seven-year-old Kirsty Richards-Bird suffered serious head injuries after being knocked down while crossing a road just yards from her front door. Her friend
ALFREDO Bissani has received international clearance to make his Burnley bow in tonight's Pontin's League clash with Grimsby Town at Turf Moor. But an ankle injury, sustained in training yesterday, could still count out the on-trial Italian. Manager Adrian
AN engineering firm has been granted official approval for specialist work. Brookhouse Composites has been awarded Civil Aviation Authority approval for the maintenance and repair of aircraft components manufactured from composite materials. The firm,
BLACKBURN MP and Shadow Home Secretary Jack Straw led the condemnation of yesterday's Budget from East Lancashire MPs. He said: "The Tories' cheers for this Budget died within 10 seconds of Tony Blair beginning his devastating demolition job. I think
SVEN Goran Eriksson remains a potential candidate for the vacant manager's job at Ewood Park, as we revealed some time ago, writes Peter White. But don't hold your breath. A report this morning that a delegation from the Blackburn Rovers board flew to
THE Lord's Day Observance Society has expressed concern over the concession given in the European Court of Justice's ruling that Britain must implement the 48-hour week which makes provision for one rest day a week, not necessarily Sunday. This ruling
BURNLEY health education specialist Pat Ashworth has made sure her World Aids Day message goes to countries all over the world next week. She has linked with Virgin Atlantic Airways and Red Ribbon International and arranged for cabin crews to hand out
TRADERS throughout East Lancashire were being warned to be on their guard against a hammer-wielding, hooded gang doing their 'Christmas shopping.' The alert followed a raid on the Daintee store, on Burnley's Smallshow industrial estate, where they got
A FACTORY is on the way to better safety after its security team gained qualifications. Four security officers at VEKA in Burnley - John Gibson, Ian Catlow, Jim O'Brien and Colin Smith - have gained NVQ Level Two in Security Guarding after completing
MICHAEL Holden (Letters, November 13), who is in favour of yet more speed humps, states that his five year old child was nearly in an accident with a car while retrieving a ball which had rolled into the road. I would have thought that the child would
MANY travellers will be shocked today by the revelation that one of the North West's major bus operators, Ribble Motor Services, has been caught running dozens of defective buses - some so dangerous that they had to be instantly banned from the road.
BREWER Malcolm MacDonald wasn't be raising his glass to the decision to freeze duty on beer. "This won't do us any good at all. We needed a duty cut to help stop the smuggled beer that is coming over the Channel, and a freeze won't help a bit," stormed
BUS giant Stagecoach was blasted today for allowing East Lancashire passengers to ride on unsafe vehicles. Ribble Motor Services, part of the Stagecoach empire, has had its operating licence reduced from 420 to 400 buses after the dangerous defects were
A DOG was rescued from a bedroom fire at a house in Clare Street, Accrington Road, Burnley. Fire crews arrived at about 10pm and found the bed and bedding alight and the terrified Yorkshire Terrier cowering in a corner. Station officer Brian Rees said
POLICE are hunting a man after a woman was stabbed in the head, face and neck with a kitchen knife. Sharon Sykes, 21, was attacked in the upstairs bedroom of her home in Brecon Road in the Whitebirk area of Blackburn last night. Police say the stabbing
PAWS for Pudsey is the title of a magazine printed by pupils at Helmshore Primary School to raise money for Children in Need. Youngsters of all ages were involved, carrying out a variety of fund-raisers for the charity, including a Pudsey drive, making
CLASS 9H at Gawthorpe High School, Padiham, is holding a week of events to highlight treatment and torture overseas. The class joined Amnesty International three years ago and is holding special assemblies this week to highlight the suffering of prisoners
HASLINGDEN professional Brad McNamara has survived a career-threatening doubt over his bowling action. The New South Wales all-rounder was reported for throwing by the umpires in a state game at the start of the Australian season. But an Australian Cricket
THE Chief Constable of Lancashire, Pauline Clare, is to attend the funeral on Friday of a police officer killed in an horrific four-car pile-up. The funeral service for PC Dave Hesketh is to be held at Holy Trinity Parish Church, Barnoldswick, and will
MOTORWAY drivers face three weeks of delays and traffic queues as work on repairing a short stretch of the M65 goes ahead. One of two lanes heading east towards Colne has been closed off and there is a 50mph speed restriction around junction 12, the Brierfield
Nature Watch with Ron Freethy MANY times in this column there have been sightings of small mammals such as the short-tailed field vole, the long-tailed field mouse - also known as the wood mouse - and the bank vole. None of these mammals hibernate but
MAY I bring to your readers' attention the Imperial Cancer Research Fund's new fact sheet - 'The treatment of advanced breast cancer.' We have seen some revolutionary advances in our understanding and treatment of breast cancer during the last 10 years
THE government has been lashed for depriving East Lancashire councils of much-needed cash. Hyndburn Mp Greg Pope and Burnley's Peter Pike have attacked the government grant system. The Labour MPs claim their local authorities are losing out because of
BOLTON boss Colin Todd has a major headache ahead of tonight's Coca Cola Cup blockbuster with Spurs...and he is delighted! Todd's problem for the fourth round tie at Burnden Park revolves around who to leave out. Danish international Per Frandsen, who
