Tourists may soon be able to take in the delights of Sunderland from a giant wheel modelled on the London Eye.

Civic chiefs have recommended approval of the plan to build the structure on the banks of the River Wear.

The Sunderland Eye would tower over the riverside and spin to allow visitors excellent views of the city.

It is the brainchild of Mandy Lane, the former head of quality for the English Tourism Council, who has been employed as a consultant to draw up the Northumbria Tourist Board's 2003 strategy.

Residents in the city are being urged to have their say on whether or not the council and regional development agency One NorthEast should go ahead with the idea.

Ms Lane said: "I think Sunderland is the right place for it, but it is now up to the people to decide whether they support it.

"Initially, the London Eye was only given planning permission for five years, so I had thought of bringing the original to Sunderland.

"But now the permission has been extended a further five years, so I thought 'why not have a version of our own built?' "

The idea has been greeted enthusiastically by the Northumbria Tourist Board, whose chief executive Peter Sloyan said it could be the catalyst for enormous regeneration in the city.

He said: "We need one of these big iconic structures to bring people into the city from within the region as well as further afield, and the Sunderland Eye would guarantee that.

"It takes something like this to open people's minds, and convince people from the likes of Newcastle to come to Sunderland and stay in the city to shop, eat and do their other business.

"It makes Sunderland a real destination, and on the back of that, it would create a domino effect of attracting more private investment.

"In the past, too much emphasis on tourism has been placed on heritage and history, and we are now beginning to realise that new attractions, such as the Angel of the North, bring in the visitors, too.

"To succeed in making Sunderland a perfect destination, we need to look to our future as well as our past, and provide something for everyone. The Sunderland Eye would help us do just that."

Some of the area's popular tourist landmarks include the piers at Roker, St Peter's Church, and Penshaw monument, which dominates the skyline.