THE regional assembly referendums will be scrapped in September if the government is heading for humiliating defeat, the Tories claimed yesterday.

Spokesman Bernard Jenkin predicted Tony Blair would use a report by the Electoral Commission on abuse of all-postal ballots to wriggle out of staging the autumn polls in the North East and Yorkshire.

And he issued the Conservatives' strongest condemnation yet of the plans for voting by post, describing it as an attempt to "fix the electoral system".

But the government insisted the referednums were on track to provide "a choice for the people, a choice to provide a better future for the north".

The row, in a Conservative-led debate on regional government, followed Labour's pledge to ditch all-postal ballots if the Commission ruled against them in September.

Ministers said that would delay the polls from their expected November date - raising the prospect they would not be held before the General Election in May or June.

Speaking in the Commons, Mr Jenkin said: "We know the prime minister is less than enthusiastic about these referendums.

"After suffering a record humiliation at the local elections, he is no doubt less inclined to receive another kicking before the next General Election.

"It's all too clear that, if the Government looks likely to lose the referendums by the time the Commission is due to report in September, then they will cancel them."

Mr Jenkin added: "If you can't win the vote, fix the electoral system.

"If ballot boxes were good enough for the Scottish referendum and good enough for the Welsh referendum, why aren't ballot boxes good enough for the people of the north of England?"

Nick Raynsford, local government minister, confirmed there would be no all-postal referendums if the Commission produced "convincing evidence" this would be unsafe.

But he accused the Tories of wanting to deny the North East and Yorkshire the devolved government already handed to people of Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and London.

The assemblies would enjoy powers "broadly comparable" to those of the London Assembly, with responsibility for economic development, strategic planning, public health and culture.