PARTY group leaders in Burnley will meet again tomorrow to try and thrash out a solution to the council crisis.

Leaders of all the political parties in the town, minus the British National Party, have been meeting to negotiate a cross-party executive to run the council.

Labour are currently offering the other parties a number of seats on a new administration, but the offer is not seen as acceptable. The Liberal Democrats are holding out for half the seats on any executive.

The BNP have been told there will be no places for them.

Labour leader Coun Stuart Caddy said: "We are working hard to resolve the current situation and I will be reminding the other party leaders that Labour is the largest party by a substantial margin.

"However, it is not in Burnley's interests for the current situation to continue and, in the interests of the town's future, we are prepared to formulate a partnership agreement with the Liberal Democrats and, if necessary, the Conservatives."

The parties need to try and find a solution before a special meeting of the council on September 29.

If talks fail there are fears civil servants could be ordered to take control of the council. By law councils must have a leader and ruling body and the Government would not be prepared to let Burnley drift on in limbo indefinitely.

The crisis follows Labour's minority administration losing power at a council meeting last month when Stuart Caddy and members of the executive resigned.

Since the local elections in June, Labour had ruled with 21 seats compared to opposition parties' total of 24 seats.

Any power-sharing agreement would run until May 2005.