AN OPINION poll on whether the borough council should be scrapped to make way for a new 'super council' for the whole of Cheshire has found 65% are against the Government's plans.

The poll, conducted by the research and information service Ipsos MORI, found across Crewe and Nantwich, only 16% people were in favour of a single-tier authority, while only 12% supported the now-withdrawn bid for separate authorities for the East and West of the county.

The 65% rejection comes one week after the borough council's own 'Keep It Local' referendum found that 85% were against the Government and county council-backed plan for a single-tier unitary council.

But opposition figures have said that the 20% discrepancy between the Ipsos MORI poll and referendum suggests that the borough council's Tory group had tried to influence public opinion on the matter.

Council leader Brian Silvester said the results showed there was over-whelming support for keeping the status quo.

He said: 'This is a vote of confidence in the borough councils of Cheshire, and shows the favoured option is to keep and improve the current system, blowing the county council's argument for single-tier government out of the water.'

And Cllr Silvester rejected claims that the council had tried to influence public opinion.

'The referendum was approved by Ipsos MORI in terms of the documentation and questions.

'But as a local politician, it would be unusual were I not in support of our own council.'

Labour group leader Steve Hogben said the 20% discrepancy between the Ipsos MORI poll and the referendum was telling.

'Surely, some questions need to be asked about the way the Tory group have gone about the referendum.

'There were even notices urging people to 'Keep It Local' on the back of parking tickets, which is hardly objective. '

County council spokesman Ian Callister added: 'With regard to telephone surveys, there is ample evidence to suggest a substantial proportion of those interviewed have little or no prior knowledge of the subject, or indeed have given any thought to the questions before the interview.

'It follows then that respondents don't really understand the complexities of the options before them or the need for the changes they are obviously less likely to vote for them.

'Social, environmental and economic problems facing local government make change inevitable, and doing nothing is not only not an option, but also downright dangerous.'