THE cost of reorganising local government in Devon would be "colossal", Plymouth MP Gary Streeter says.

Any attempt to create a "super-council" to run the county would create chaos, the Conservative MP for South West Devon said.

The Boundary Committee has recommended the change to John Denham, the Secretary of State for Local Government.

The committee's preferred plan would abolish Devon's district councils and leave Plymouth and Torbay councils untouched.

"The Government should leave well alone," Mr Streeter said.

He is taking a delegation of Devon MPs to lobby Mr Denham in London on January 14 next year.

"The cost of reorganisation would be colossal," Mr Streeter said. "The uncertainty and chaos it would create would impact on services in the short term."

In the wake of this May's council elections, which gave the Conservatives control of the county council, Mr Streeter said: "Devon under new management is already co-operating closely with the district councils and looking to make savings wherever it can. The Government should leave well alone."

Mr Streeter has already extracted a commitment from the Shadow Cabinet that should the Conservatives win the next election they would not impose a unitary authority on Devon.

"To ram this through on the eve of an election smacks of political spitefulness," Mr Streeter said.