TORY leader David Cameron praised "booming" Bournemouth when he spoke to the Daily Echo during a flying visit to the town.

He said he enjoys the resort as a conference area but admitted some exclusive areas of Dorset are out of reach, even for political leaders.

"I used to visit Sandbanks for family holidays when I was young but that was before it became millionaire's row I'm not sure I could afford it any more," said Mr Cameron, who lives in a five-bedroom Victorian home in West London.

"I have some happy memories of the area and I caught my first mackerel off Brownsea Island. I am looking forward to returning to Bournemouth for conference later this year."

Mr Cameron was in town to address the Local Government Association conference.

He spoke about the "spirit of civic pride" and promised local government representatives they would be given more power under the Conservatives.

Mr Cameron stressed that he would not restructure local government, easing concerns that councils such as Bournemouth and Poole could be merged to form "super councils."

"We want to see stability in local government structures so we would scrap the review that David Miliband started," he told the Echo.

"It's wasting time, it's setting council against council and it's a massive distraction from the real task of improving services and increasing efficiency.

"Neighbouring councils could work together more but we do not need a reorganisation."

Mr Cameron also told delegates he would scrap Regional Assemblies and Standards Boards and that he would give local government more power to spend money in the way leaders see fit.

And he stressed the vital role local councils play in the battle to stop climate change.

"There is a direct connection between the choices we all make in our daily lives, at a local level, and the future of our planet," he said.

"I passionately believe that we all have a shared responsibility to rise to the challenge of climate change."

Mr Cameron's London home hit the headlines on Thursday when objections were voiced to his proposals for solar panels and a 14ft wind turbine.