A COUNTY'S emblem has caused problems for a new-look hotel.

Eagle-eyed Yorkshire people saw red when they spotted a Lancashire version of the white rose had been put up in error at the front of the renamed Yorkshire Hotel, previously the Imperial, in Harrogate town centre.

Now, after protests from Yorkshire purists, it is being taken down following a public apology from the hotel's Australian manager, Daniel Atkin.

Preserved heraldic designs have dictated that the Yorkshire rose should have a petal on top and a barb either side.

The red Lancastrian version, believed by generations of Yorkists to be the lesser of the two blooms, comes with a barb on top, flanked by two petals.

Mr Atkin, who returned from holiday this week, did not know about the mistake until it was pointed out.

He said: "My initial reaction is simply to get the company back to change it quickly.

"I was totally unaware about what had happened, but we did use a Yorkshire firm to do the work and I thought they would have known we wanted the Yorkshire version."

The hotel had wanted to underline its Yorkshire image with the rose emblem as a key part of its £2.5m restoration scheme.

The hotel, once known as the Prospect, dates from the 1830s, on a site overlooking Montpellier Gardens and West Park Stray.

Half the hotel's 80 bedrooms have been upgraded to four-star standard and the rest will be completed by March.

The hotel has a new bar-brasserie, called HG1 after its postcode.

The top floor has been transformed into a restaurant and cocktail bar, giving people views over the Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.