TIME has been temporarily called on a North-East pub ambassador after he suggested some local drinkers and landlords dislike 'incomers'.

Len Alderson, whose task is to encourage more people to visit pubs in rural Weardale, has now been suspended from his £15,000-a-year job.

It follows a report in a national newspaper which said the 52-year-old felt outsiders and tourists were seen as a problem in the dale.

He was quoted by The Daily Express as saying: "In some places, there is still almost an animosity to any outsider coming in, which is a real problem to get over.

"Some people do not want the tourists. They don't see outsiders as a source of revenue, they see them as a problem.

"The locals could prove difficult. People are wary of incomers, but they should see the benefits, because many of the people who drink in the pub work in local businesses, which will obviously benefit from an increase in visitors.

"We don't want to teach landlords to suck eggs, but they need to know how to deal with people and not to see them as a threat.

"People have been a bit inward-looking and are quite happy with what they have. So it's a matter of educating them."

He was appointed by Wear Valley District Council to work a 28-hour week as Mine Host project co-ordinator, targeting 16 pubs in the 15-mile stretch along the A689 between Wolsingham and Cowshill on the Cumbrian border.

His task is to persuade landlords to sell food and become more family-friendly.

But furious council bosses took his comments as an insult to the people of Weardale.

Marketing and communication manager Craig Downs admitted that certain remarks had caused concern, adding: "He has been suspended pending an investigation. The project will continue despite the investigation into the conduct of the co-ordinator."

Mr Alderson said he was unable to comment on what had happened.

But Trish Oxberry, landlady of The Bay Horse, in Wolsingham, said: "I have found him very supportive and he has helped us a lot. He is very enthusiastic about the initiative.''