LIBERAL Democrat campaigners have been accused of petitioning for a new pavement in York - after Conservative councillors had already agreed to fund it.

Tory Cllr Sam Lisle said he and fellow Rawcliffe and Clifton Without councillors had been involved in lengthy discussions about the need for a new stretch of footpath alongside Green Lane in Clifton Without, near a new Aldi store.

“There are stretches of verge on either side of the road without pavements, which mean pedestrians have to cross the road twice to use a pavement,” he said.

He said the councillors decided earlier this year to allocate £18,000 ward committee funding and council officers had then approved the spending.

It was then galling to find a LibDem petition had been launched calling for the pavement, with a video on Facebook, but when he posted a comment about the decision already being taken, it had been deleted, he said.

"It’s typical LibDem dirty tricks. We have made no secret of this project, speaking about it to residents and at parish council meetings for some considerable time. It is not acceptable to petition for things you know are already going to happen, and when told about it to delete comments on social media and continue the campaign.”

LibDem ward campaigner Darryl Smalley said: “At the time we launched our petition this summer, we were clearly not aware that the project had been agreed and funded. Local residents have been promised a new footpath for years but it had not been confirmed.”

He said it was not a new campaign; the LibDems had submitted a request to the council last October. The council had confirmed it made sense to provide a path but it had not completed feasibility work and did not have available funds. He was ‘surprised’ by Cllr Lisle’s comments, as it had been important to start a petition on residents’ behalf to hurry up progress and ensure it was delivered.