PENDLE Borough's Conservative leader Cllr Paul White has accused the Labour and Liberal Democrat opposition groups of costing residents cash by opposing a move to four-yearly council elections.

Currently councillors are elected in thirds, three years out of four with one year poll free.

At the last full Pendle Council meeting, Cllr White moved a change to electing all councillors every four years .

The motion failed to get the necessary two-third majority after Labour and the LibDems voted against it.

Cllr White said: "The Conservatives continue to believe that this is the best option for Pendle, long-term stability for its people and saving tens of thousands of pounds in the process. We remain committed to delivering this."

Cllr Mohammed Iqbal, leader of the Labour group, said: "The people of Pendle prefer regular elections to hold their elected representatives to account. The Tories are seeking to fix our local democracy."