Council leaders insist a town centre big screen is still going ahead – amid 'fake news' rumours that it had been scrapped.

Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council's plans for the digital screen in High Street were approved last November, but work on the project has been delayed due to issues with underground water pipes.

The delay resulted in rumours circulating social media that the plans for the screen had been ditched. But deputy council leader Stephen Sweeney told the finance, assets and performance scrutiny committee that work on the scheme would start soon.

The screen, measuring 5.1 metres by 2.9 metres, will be mounted on a post close to the junction with Hick Street. It is being funded out of Newcastle's £11 million Future High Street Fund allocation, and will be used to show sporting events, events of national importance and community messages.

Cllr Sweeney dispelled the rumours about the screen during an update on the Future High Street Fund projects. He said: "Some gossip has gone round the internet that the big television screen isn't going to happen – well it is. It should be starting work tomorrow.

"There's been a delay because there's a water pipe that goes underneath and Severn Trent want to make sure our engineers do it right."

The approved plans are part of a £390,000 investment in the town centre. (Nub News

Committee member Joan Whieldon said that similar rumours were 'rife' on the internet, and suggested that the council could do more to correct such 'conspiracy theories'.

She said: "What might be helpful if we used multi-media to do progress reports so that people are informed that it is happening, and they get it from the horse's mouth instead of sitting in little groups and getting very cross."

Committee chair Mark Holland suggested that the town centre screen itself, once operational, could be used to 'counteract fake news'.

Cllr Sweeney said he was recently challenged over another false social media rumour that the council had stopped The Range moving onto the Homebase site in Newcastle. But he expressed doubt that the council could actually prevent people believing such things.

He said: "It was wrong, every inch of the way. Why would the council do it? It's not even a council building.

"We can certainly look at putting more on social media, but once people have got something in their heads, I'm not sure you're going to convince them otherwise."

Cllr Mike Stubbs, a member of the opposition Labour group, claimed that rumours about the closure of Kidsgrove Sports Centre had helped bring down the previous Labour administration.

He said: "A lot of what was said – 90 per cent of what was put on social media was lies. Certain councillors didn't fight against that. So we live by the sword

"I can talk from personal experience. I had to take out a community resolution order against a member of the public for online abuse."