£110,000 bill for blunder in assembly leaflet

The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM) is now sending out a one page letter rectifying the error to 220,000 households in County Durham - at a cost of about £110,000.

The leaflet was designed to explain the proposed reorganisation of local councils in County Durham if there is a Yes vote in November's referendum on a directly-elected regional assembly.

Voters in the county are faced with the option of one single county-wide council or three smaller unitary authorities, formed by amalgamating the existing district councils.

The first leaflet stated it would cost £38m to set up the three new councils and £37m if the single authority wins the vote.

However, after what a Government spokesman described as an "error in the line of work" at the ODPM, Local Government Minister Nick Raynsford revealed that the true cost of the three council option would, in fact, be closer to £49m.

Now letters explaining the costly error will drop onto the doormats of every home in County Durham starting on September 27.

A spokesman for the ODPM said: "It is obviously important that people have the right information so we are now looking to send out a one-page letter to clarify the error. It is regrettable, but the whole point of putting a written ministerial statement to Parliament is to reassure people that they do have the right information."

Robin Todd, spokesman for Local Choice, Local Voice and deputy leader of Easington District Council, said: "Obviously we are extremely disappointed in the Government in making such a fundamental mistake."

A spokesman for North- East Says No, the group leading the campaign against the regional assembly, said: "It's typical of politicians to massively underestimate the costs of reorganising government.

"We've seen it here, we've seen it in Scotland, we'll see it with the assembly."

He added: "It's another example of politicians talk, we pay."