A CHIEF constable yesterday published an open letter backing the idea of "super force".

North Yorkshire Police chief Della Cannings dismissed reports that a Greater Yorkshire amalgamation would cost more than £100m and said that local identity would not be lost.

Government ministers have proposed that North Yorkshire Police either merges with West Yorkshire or amalgamates into a Yorkshire and Humber force alongside West Yorkshire, South Yorkshire and Humberside.

In December, North Yorkshire's police authority voted overwhelmingly to put forward a Greater Yorkshire force as its preferred option.

However, members voiced serious concerns about the impact of any amalgamation on neighbourhood policing.

In her letter, Ms Cannings warned against a merger between North and West Yorkshire.

She said: "Unfortunately, the potential success of the mooted merger of the North and West Yorkshire forces would be severely hindered by the massive contrast between the policing needs of the North and West Yorkshire areas respectively.

"In plain language, such a merger would effectively be a "take-over", accompanied by none of the energy and potential for positive change that would be possible if the four forces of the Greater Yorkshire area combined their resources and best practices in a strategic regional amalgamation."

Ms Cannings said it was impossible to estimate the potential cost of any merger until more details were known.

"It should be noted that, until new police authorities and new chief officer teams are appointed, nobody will know how future police structures will be shaped and therefore, at this stage, estimates of future costs are at best, minimally informed guesses," she said.

"Members of the public of the Yorkshire and Humber region need to be aware that there is a powerful and persuasive case indicating that, far from being diminished, the quality of neighbourhood policing, and the status of the local basic command unit will be significantly enhanced by regional amalgamation.

"Emerging local accountability arrangements would further contribute to the creation of a local identity and a local focus for crime and disorder reduction.

"With imagination and willingness to envisage future policing structures that may be different from those currently in place, we believe that a more effective, more efficient future is possible for protective services and local neighbourhood policing alike.