A WORTH Valley councillor and former Bradford Lord Mayor has revealed he will step down this May after nearly four decades of civic service.

Cllr Barry Thorne has been a member of Haworth, Cross Roads and Stanbury Parish Council for eight years.

But he was also a district councillor for Keighley West ward for 30 years from 1974 to 2004.

He said he had been honoured to work alongside "superb" parish councillors in Haworth, and paid tribute to former council chairman cllr Peter Hill and current chairman cllr John Huxley.

"Haworth is a wonderful place and the people there are very warm and welcoming," he said.

"My problem is with central government. I can't just sit here and see what is happening with the powers being passed down through localism but no money with those powers.

"The parish councils are doing their best with little or no money, and the cuts being made in the north of the country are far more serious than in the south.

"I couldn't be a district councillor anymore, because I could not do what they are having to do because of these cuts. It's awful."

Cllr Thorne, 67, who is married with two sons and lives in Oakworth, was born in Somerset but has lived in Yorkshire since 1970.

His first councillor role was on the now defunct Skipton and Rural District Council, where he was the only Labour Party member. He has been a member of the Labour Party for 45 years.

He chaired Bradford Council Leisure Services for 17 years and oversaw the renovation of the Alhambra Theatre and the development of new swimming pools for Keighley.

In the early 1980s he worked closely with the then Conservative Government to help set up a race relations advisory group in Bradford. He was Bradford Lord Mayor in 1992/93.

Cllr Thorne served in the Royal Navy for seven years as a leading radio electrical mechanic and has been a passionate defender of disabled people's rights.

He is press officer and fundraiser for Bradford Disability Sports and Leisure, which works to ensure disabled people are able to enjoy and benefit from taking part in sports.