Pennine councils bid to create unitary authority

Four Pennine Lancashire councils are planning to join forces as a unitary council in a bid to become the centre of the next industrial revolution.

The leaders of Rossendale, Pendle, Blackburn with Darwen and Burnley Councils have written a joint letter to the government and local MPs requesting support for the creation of a Pennine Lancashire Authority.

The cross-party alliance says that its plan would see their areas move from "being remembered as the birthplaces of the Industrial Revolution" to "being reborn as the Industrial HQ of the Northern Powerhouse".