THE latest figures produced by North Yorkshire County Council say creating a single unitary authority covering the county would save council tax payers at least £10m.

County councillors believe that having a single county-wide authority would cost between £10m and £20m less than the three other options for the future of local government being considered by the Boundary Commission.

If there was a vote in favour of a regional assembly for Yorkshire and the Humber at next year's referendum, the two-tier system currently operating in North Yorkshire would be scrapped.

Figures produced by the Boundary Committee costed the single-authority option at between £3m and £6m less than the other proposals, but County Council leader John Weighell said that was an underestimate.

He said: "The Audit Commission has said these figures don't properly reflect the full costs of all the options.

"Our work isn't complete yet, but early estimates suggest these figures understate the real difference by two to three times.

"On that basis, our solution could beat any other proposal by £10m to £20m.

"In real terms, that could represent a substantial saving of between £50 and £100 on the average Band D council tax."

The other options involve dividing the county and forming either two or three unitary authorities from six of the existing districts. Selby would join the East Riding authority and York would remain independent under all three proposals.