Family to get three houses

A LABOUR council is under fire for planning to give a single mother with nine children three council houses of her own.

After knocking three terraced houses into one to accommodate them, Kirklees council in West Yorkshire will install a live-in social worker to help look after them on an estate in Batley.

The scheme was attacked by the council's Tory group chief whip, Coun Roger Roberts, who said: 'The cost of knocking three houses into one will probably be pounds 50,000 and the family are already costing taxpayers a small fortune.'

A council spokesman said: 'Our main priority is the children. It is beneficial for the family to stay together.'