NEW figures published by North Yorkshire County Council claim that council tax payers will be left with a hefty bill if the county is split into three authorities.

The council announced the figures after the Boundary Commission revealed four options for the future of local government in North Yorkshire.

They include creating one, all powerful unitary authority or splitting the county into two or three separate unitary authorities.

The county council has thrown its weight behind the first option, saying that having just one authority would be significantly cheaper.

Figures revealed this week by the council's finance department put the cost of having three authorities at £20.6m - equating to an extra £107.60 on the council tax bill of a typical Band D property.

The cost of having two authorities was put at £9.7m, above the cost of having one, with this option adding £50.86 on to council tax.

John Moore, director of financial services, said: "The county council believes that cost will be a significant factor in the judgement that will ultimately be made by the electorate, especially if no additional grants from central government are available to meet the one-off and ongoing costs of reorganisation, with the full cost therefore falling to be met by the local council taxpayer."