A LEGAL battle between two North-East authorities looks set to rumble on after another delay.

Durham County Council was ordered to pay Darlington Borough Council £2.2m earlier this year after losing an arbitration battle which began in 1997.

The county council was also ordered to hand over £1.1m in interest which had built up over the past six years.

The wrangle came after Darlington split from the county council, following a local government shake-up, with the borough council demanding its share of a £12m local development fund.

But, despite losing and having to pay the costs of the case from the public purse, the county council has appealed against the award of the interest.

However, its bid for leave to appeal has been delayed at the High Court and proceedings may now not start until the end of June.