US-style mayor gets a 'no'

The party, along with its Liberal Democrat opponents on Durham City Council, had campaigned against the idea of a powerful council boss chosen by the people.

The referendum, which was overseen by the Electoral Reform Commission, produced 11,974 votes against and 8,327 for a mayor.

The turnout was 29 per cent, in line with other postal votes in the region.

Council leader Maurice Crathorne said: "I am delighted with the result. We have given the people in Durham the opportunity to make a choice and they have done, emphatically.

"We did not like personality politics and we were not happy with the cost - an estimated £250,000 in the first year alone.

"We felt the authority was doing quite well to start with, and we did not want to lose our traditional and historic ceremonial mayor. I think it is an endorsement of the way the authority is being run - despite what some people say.''

Councillor Crathorne said the council opted for a postal ballot to get a bigger response.

Sunderland used traditional election-style polling, but only ten per cent of the electorate voted.

Durham City will continue to operate with the leader and cabinet model introduced two years ago.

The city's Conservative Association, which has no city councillors, had urged people to vote for a mayor, saying a strong political leader could end the "excessive secrecy and high council taxes'' that it claims characterise the Labour administration.

Campaigning cobbler Tony Martin, who had announced he would stand if the vote went for an elected mayor, was also in favour,

"There has been a lot of scaremongering about what an elected mayor would mean,'' he said.

A previous consultation exercise produced a small majority for an elected mayor, but only one in ten of the city's 36,676 electors replied.

Of the six ballots held so far in the region, North Tyneside, Hartlepool and Middlesbrough have opted for a mayor, while Sunderland, Sedgefield and Berwick have voted against.