HYNDBURN'S new political structure is set to come into force later on this year.

The council's bosses are currently creating a new constitution which will spell the end of the traditional committee structure.

Instead, an all-powerful cabinet will make the decisions, with their actions being monitored by standards and scrutiny panels.

All decision will continue to be rubberstamped by councillors at a meeting of the full council.

And less than a year after the new system comes into place, a reduction in councillors will take place, with the number dropping from 47 to 35 as ward boundaries are redrawn ahead an election of the whole council in 2002.

The borough's new mayor, Coun Dave Parkins said: "From May onwards we will be changing the way that council meetings are run, and continuing to look at how we operate with the cabinet and leader model of political management.

"By July we will have to have a new constitution in place, ready to submit to the secretary of state.

"Sometime in the Autumn we will be putting that into practice, with the cabinet and leader becoming fully accountable for the executive decision with the policy and resources committee disappearing.

"And by the following May we will, for the first time ever, see a major reduction in the number of councillors."

A consultation exercise ended last month. Residents had been asked to pick one of four options, including the creation of a directly- elected mayor, or keeping the system the same.

People were encouraged to vote at meetings of the borough's area councils.

Coun Parkins added: "Local Government modernisation is real, and we are about to experience it on an unprecedented scale." A cabinet has been operating for the last year, but all its decisions have had to be approved by the policy and resources committee.

In November, the Lancashire Evening Telegraph revealed how the Conservative-only cabinet had been claiming expenses for meetings -- even though one party meetings are not eligible for allowances. The cabinet has provisionally been announced, although Coun Peter Britcliffe's role depends on how he fares in the General Election next week:

Coun Peter Britcliffe (leader, in charge of overall strategic and financial management), Coun Jim Dickinson (deputy leader, planning and sustainability), Coun Peter Clarke (regeneration and social inclusion), Coun Brian Walmsley (leisure and tourism), Coun Russell Davies (social housing), Coun Sandra Hayes (environmental protection), Coun Douglas Deakin (IT and E. Government), Coun Derek Scholes (transportation), Coun Stan Horne (personnel and equal opportunities), Coun Douglas Hayes (crime and disorder).

The borough's area councils, planning committee and town centre regeneration board will continue unchanged.