A PACKED meeting of outraged residents has sent out a "no to pylons" throughout south Cumbria message loud and clear.

Concerned householders from the Duddon Valley and Furness attended a meeting called by Barrow and Furness MP John Woodcock on Friday night, to fight National Grid's controversial plans to place 50m electricity pylons through the Furness Peninsula.

The plan for the west Cumbria to Lancashire route for the power lines, which will connect the proposed Moorside nuclear power plant to the grid, was revealed last week.

While the Lake District would be pylon-free through the use of underground cabling, the 400kV overhead lines would pass through south Copeland and into Furness, passing communities in Ireleth, Lindal, Dalton, Newton and Roosecote.

At the meeting, held at Victory Hall in Broughton, the audience and speakers wanted to see the underground cabling extended through the Duddon Valley and Furness.

Ian Parmee of the Power Without Pylons group said the amount of pylons around areas Kirkby and The Green, is "intense".

Mr Parmee said: "Look at the plans for Kirkby and you see how hard we are being hit.

"It is unbelievable that this is being considered.

"We have to build serious opposition to this locally and we are already getting there."

A woman in the audience said people around the UK have received the message that there are no pylons in the Lake District, but a new message had to be sent out about the there are unwanted pylon plans for the neighbouring areas.

Kate Willshaw, of the Friends of the Lake District, pledged that the group was supportive of communities outside of the Lake District National Park, known as the National Park setting, not being blighted with pylons.

Mr Woodcock said: "It is a testament to how strongly the community feels about this issue that we have this amazing turnout."

He said he is absolutely in favour of Moorside but not the "injustice" of the pylon plans. The MP said people in the Duddon Valley and Furness were being asked to "lump it".

Mr Woodcock paid tribute to PWP and encouraged people to work with the group and submit their objections to the National Grid consultation.

He said he would work to put a parliamentary spotlight on the issue with Copeland MP Jamie Reed and push for a parliamentary debate.

Mr Woodcock said: "The pledge of support from Friends of the Lake District is critically important."

The MP put an idea forward to have a New Year's Day march before the consultation ends on January 6.

"Let's really make a big noise," he said.

After the meeting Dr Kate Willshaw said: "We are really pleased that there will be no pylons in the National Park, but they still need to finish the job properly. There are plans to have them from 10m outside the boundary.

"We are fully supportive of protecting the National Park setting."

Power Without Pylons will hold a community meeting at Thwaites Village Hall, Thwaites on November 11.

Cumbria pylon plan sparks energetic debate

Route of new power lines for Cumbria revealed - and many south Cumbria communities are affected