Fury erupted today as it emerged that work starting on Odsal Superdome has been put back to mid-summer.

National Superdome boss John Garside has told Bradford Council it will be necessary yet again to delay the start date of the £200 million project because of problems with the bank.

He has told senior Council officers that unforeseen events involving the Superdome's deputy chairman had caused a "conflict of interest" with the previously appointed agent bank.

Today Mr Garside told the Telegraph & Argus that he was about to go out to tender for a new bank which would choose a new organisation to fund the grandiose project from organisations vying for the deal.

But today Bradford Bulls' boss Chris Caisley said: "He has as much chance of starting work in mid-summer as I have of flying to the moon. He hasn't got a funder.

"Over three years ago he confirmed to me an the local MP that his funding was in place."

Mr Caisley, who is locked in a bitter war with the Superdome boss over the start of the project, said he was angry about the report, which will go to Councillors as part of their quarterly review on the planned scheme.

The Superdome would bring world-class sports facilities to Odsal.

Mr Caisley said last week that his top club was in danger of losing its Super League place because of long delays over the scheme - first announced more than four years ago.

He hit out when Bradford Council agreed to extend the start date on the stadium, which it owned for two years in 1996.

But the executive director of the Council's regeneration and strategic support group, David Kennedy, will recommend councillors to accept the progress report and provide support to ensure that work starts in line with the developers' revised timetable.

The officers also say in the report that a multi-plex cinema operator has now been allocated space on the ground floor which was previously under offer from a major shop.

Today Mr Garside said the organisations vying to fund Superdome included banks.

Asked how many organisations wanted to fund it he said it was "as long as a piece of string".

He said: "We negotiated with a leading UK retailer probably against our better judgement. We have a much more beneficial offer from the cinema. We have informed the retailer of our decision."

Mr Garside said: "Mr Caisley is fully aware of the contract between ourselves and the Council. He is on dangerous ground if he is suggesting to the Council that they should renege."

He said the Council was entirely satisfied with progress and it was no business of Mr Caisley's.

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