A BID to launch a council investigation into Worcestershire's High Streets has been rejected - despite fears they could become "ghost towns" without a boost.

Worcestershire County Council has opted against a review of shopping centres after Conservative politicians united to throw out a Labour bid to kick one off.

During fierce clashes at a full council meeting, Labour councillors said an investigation should be launched at County Hall over the impact of business rates, changing consumer habits and "how to reverse the decline".

But it was blocked by Tory councillors who said High Streets are issues best left to district councils, and that the authority had more important matters to look into like care for the elderly.

Some councillors also said the review was uncalled for as Worcester, the main retail core in the county, is thriving and has the second lowest voids in the entire West Midlands.

Councillor Peter McDonald, Labour group leader, said: "There is a desperate need to revitalise our High Streets and offer them extra support to boost job creation.

"We really need to somehow provide a much-needed boost to our shops and small businesses and reverse the decline of the High Street, we cannot allow them to turn into ghost towns."

He also said too many hot food takeaways are littering towns and villages across the county, instead of shops people want to visit.

A Labour motion called for the council's in-house watchdog, the Overview Scrutiny and Performance Board (OSPB), to launch a review into Worcestershire's shopping centres.

His remarks were refuted by opposing councillors, who said he was asking the wrong authority.

Councillor Simon Geraghty, the deputy leader and cabinet member for economy, skills and infrastructure, said: "Retail is very important but this is mainly a district matter than a county matter.

"With the diversity of retail across the county, they'd be better off doing that (approaching district councils).

"In Worcester retail is thriving, we have the second lowest voids in the West Midlands - this is a very diverse matter."

Tory Councillor Andy Roberts slammed the Labour request as "irksome", saying more important, life changing matters are "being ignored".

He said the OSPB was being inundated with pleas to investigate matters like the Lord Lieutenant, country parks and now shops despite more pressing issues like the future of adult social care needing investigation.

Labour Councillor Luke Mallett said he was "absolutely dumbfounded" and "amazed" by the Tory stance but in response Councillor John Campion said he was indulging in "pure political rhetoric".

“We need to build a vibrant economy in Worcestershire, I see this motion as enabling employment, helping our vibrant town centres and doing whatever we can to ensure we have a strong retail offer in the county,” said Cllr Mallett.

“This is pro-business, pro-jobs in Worcestershire, it’s about economic prosperity. I’m amazed the members opposite, who claim to be pro-business, are against this, I’m absolutely dumbfounded.”

Cllr Campion, a Conservative cabinet member, said: “Who works in retail, it’s usually the low skilled, low paid workers – do we really want more of that, no, we want high skilled jobs, that’s what our economic plans for Worcestershire are about.”

He appealed for the motion to “be dismissed”, saying it was not a serious one.

Labour Councillor Robin Lunn argued that the county council could do much more than any district councils could in supporting retail, given its budget and influence across Worcestershire, but Tory Councillor Ken Pollock labelled the motion as “badly worded”.

The motion was lost 14 votes to 29 despite support from the Liberal Democrats.

In September we reported how Worcester was bucking both regional and national trends with its strong retail performance.

The city centre is proving a major success story, with empty units at their lowest in years after a surge in interest from independent traders and big name brands.

Just 9.5 per cent of Worcester's retail units are empty, 67 out of 702, compared to a West Midlands average of 13 per cent and national average of just over 10 per cent.

Worcester is also one of only two towns or cities in the entire region - the other being Solihull - which has not suffered a decline in the number of shops since January after the city benefited from a raft of new stores.

Ten city shops have closed this year but another 10 new ones have moved in, compared to widespread declines elsewhere which has seen 964 net closures around the UK.

The city's net gain on shops since August last year has been eight, with many of the newer traders saying they have blown away by the footfall.

Two recent reports have highlighted the city's success, including real estate firm Colliers International, which says Worcester now has a "strong" reputation among retailers because of how well it has weathered the last few years.

But the rest of the picture around Worcestershire is very mixed.