In a letter to councils and chambers of trade, Blackburn Council and the town's Chamber of Trade urge other local authorities to make formal objections to the £700m scheme.

They even enclosed a "model letter" addressed to Preston's development director objecting to the scheme.

Dozens of local councils and chambers of trade have been contacted by Blackburn's regeneration boss Alan Cottam, as well as David Cottam, president of Blackburn and District Chamber of Trade.

The letter also appeared in at least one weekly newspaper in Merseyside.
Livid Preston Council bosses have branded the move "virtually inciting a riot".

Leader Ken Hudson has written to the director of Government Office North West to make her aware of the letter.

He said: "I have written to Liz Meek at Government Office North West and asked if this is how Blackburn should be doing it.

"Should they be inciting people without real knowledge to object just for the sake of objecting when they had not even thought to object?"

Preston also says the letter contains "misinformation". It refers to Tithebarn as having 800,000 sq ft of new shopping and leisure area, when Preston Council says it is in fact 500,000 sq ft.

Preston Council chief executive Jim Carr said: "We are very upset about this.

"We are obviously concerned that their misunderstanding of the actual impact of Tithebarn is being broadcast far and wide.

"We believe they have misunderstood the impact of the project and we want the opportunity to convince them that they have got it wrong.

"If they are spreading misinformation it makes it very difficult for us to put the story right."

Peter Kuit, director of development at the council, said he had so far received a letter from Chorley Council indicating they would not be objecting to the project.

He added: "We are taking the complaints very seriously.
"We will be replying to any letters by simply correcting the misinformation so that people can judge more fairly."

The letter from Blackburn states: "If the Tithebarn scheme is approved, many of our small towns will face even further retail competition.

"We are monitoring the situation closely, in conjunction with Blackpool Council who share our concerns, and have made representations against the scale of the proposal in Preston and are continuing to do so.

"We would urge you to do the same and send your objections to Preston City Council about the proposals."

Amazingly, it goes on to say they "do not want to undermine the regeneration of Preston City Centre" but adds they have "serious concerns" about how Tithebarn will affect them.

John Boydell, president of the North and Western Lancashire Chamber of Commerce which has offices in both Preston and Blackpool, warned the councils they risked damaging the chances of pumping £700m into the area.

He said: "We need to think bigger not smaller, we are not villages which are competing against each other, we are a region which is looking to grow.

"That means the development of Blackpool, Blackburn and Preston are not threats to each other and we should be celebrating each other.
"If we are resorting to squabbling, that will only make us look petty and that can only be damaging to the area."

Frank McKenna, of business lobbying group Downtown Preston in Business, blasted the action as "outrageous," urged Preston Council to "fight fire with fire" and launch a campaign in support of Tithebarn.

He said: "We have to get the message out there that, in the midst of a recession, a £700m investment anywhere in the county should be welcomed because there will be construction work available to Blackburn companies, jobs in shops available to Blackburn workers, the whole area will benefit.

"But, the council and the developer, the Preston Tithebarn Partnership, has to play its part. We were promised the application would be heard in March and now we are being told May, people want a clear timetable and they want action.

"It is all very well sitting here saying Blackburn and Blackpool are terrible, but let's give people in Preston something solid to unite behind."

The Evening Post could not contact Alan Cottam, but his deputy Andrew Lightfoot said it "shared concerns" of other local authorities.

He said: "We support the actions of the Chamber in writing to businesses and our neighbouring councils outlining their position on this matter."

Peter Callow, leader of Blackpool Council, said: "We will not be sending out letters, we are going about things in a straightforward manner because I think people know where we are coming from."

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