This slogan tells its own story of strong feelings in the Gannow district.

"The authorities have created a ghost town and they call it progress. They have gambled on the motorway being built and their stake has been the homes and lives of thousands of people." The words are those of Mr Donald Bushby, former Mayor of Burnley and now chairman of the Federation of Local Action Groups. But, as more and more houses in the line of the proposed M65 are bricked up, they echo the feelings of a growing number of people.

Mr Bushby is particularly angry because last week the bricking up process spread to his own district of Rosegrove. He said: "A house at 101 Rosegrove Lane gave the go-ahead to this motorway. This was a perfectly good home and I can see Rosegrove going the way of other areas like Gannow and Whittlefield - from residential area to slum to ghost town. Residents have been determined not to give up hope for the Rosegrove area, staying in their homes rather than selling up. But one or two houses were bound to come empty, and already the vandals have moved in to wreck this empty house. Things don't need to be handled in this way. Even if the motorway gets the go-ahead, it will be some time before work can start and those houses could still be used as temporary homes for the homeless people.