CHRISTCHURCH is “holding Dorset to ransom”, councillors were told.

The borough council held an extraordinary meeting on Thursday where proposals to hold a referendum on Christchurch merging with Bournemouth and Poole to form a new unitary authority were discussed and approved by 15 votes to nine.

Cllr Ray Nottage said the county was being “held to ransom” by the borough’s indecision. “We are now a Conservative council at odds with a Conservative government, not a good place to be.

“I hope this madness ends soon otherwise I see the council’s zig-zagging into another cliff fall, this time with huge consequences.”

The non-binding referendum, a postal ballot which will cost £60,000, met with criticism from several quarters, and chief executive David McIntosh warned that he had been advised by the Department for Communities and Local Government that the result would be regarded as “a very small part of the consideration of the Secretary of State” - who will make the final decision.

Cllr Claire Bath said: “£60,000 is money we don’t have to spend.”

She said the referendum “will give false hope to residents that we don’t have to do anything and can remain the same - we can’t, we have to face the facts”.

Cllr Trevor Watts said the borough had “stuck our heads in the sand” and must “wake up and smell the coffee, or the tea, whichever you prefer”.

“On May 3, 2019, Dorset County Council will no longer exist,” he said.

“Where are the services for our elderly, our disabled residents, our children, our families going to come from.

“We have no backup plan.”

Along these lines, Cllrs Bath and Sue Spittle asked about reports that leader David Flagg was to start talks with Hampshire County Council about Christchurch possibly rejoining, four decades after it split from the county.

Cllr Bath said: “If the leader is going to be making representations to Hampshire County council, does he require a mandate to do so from this council?”

Mr McIntosh said these were only “exploratory discussions”.

Backing the poll, Cllr Margaret Phipps said: “This council has already democratically voted against joining a unitary authority with Bournemouth and Poole, and voted in March to to ask residents whether they think our decision was right.

“This referendum will be democracy in action, it will be local and will provide a direction from the bottom up, so I say lets get on with it.”

Cllr David Jones said: “We are decisive, we don’t want to be part of ‘greater Bournemouth’.

“We have promised the people a referendum. We know it is not a binding decision, unfortunately.

“We must go out and campaign for what we want for Christchurch.”

Cllr Bernie Davis said the consultation on the super council plans showed Dorset was behind the idea, but Cllr Colin Bungey said “289 people out of a population of nearly 50,000 in this borough said they wanted to go into Bournemouth, is this democracy, I don’t think so”.

“We need to hear from the majority of the population,” he said.

The super council plans have provoked particularly lively debate in Christchurch over the past 12 months.

At one point in the meeting on Thursday Cllr Bungey attempted to correct what he called “inaccurate” figures quoted by members.

At this point Mr McIntosh said: “Some information mentioned tonight is inaccurate. That is a feature of your debates for the last year on this subject.

“I have sat here for many hours in your local government reorganisation-related debates, listening to all sorts of things said, often said with passion but not always accurate.”

Earlier in the meeting Cllr Trish Jamieson had commented on the atmosphere at recent debates, saying: “It has been a very difficult time for all of us, causing great divisions in this council which I have never seen before.

“I am sure whatever our personal views we will do the best we can for our residents.”