THE leader of Bournemouth Council has called for the results of Christchurch's referendum to be "disregarded completely".

And in a letter to the Secretary of State, Sajid Javid, Cllr John Beesley has hit out at those Christchurch members opposed to merger.

Cllr Beesley, writing to Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government last week, implored Mr Javid not to grant Christchurch Borough Council their request for extra time, saying it would have "significant implications".

Bournemouth council remains convinced Future Dorset is the only viable option for the whole county, he writes.

Referring to the recent referendum in Christchurch in which 84 per cent of those who took part voted against forming a unitary with Poole and Bournemouth, he says pressures in adult social care and children's services were not mentioned in information for the local poll, nor was the financial position of Dorset County Council.

Dorset County Council is responsible for the "majority of services for Christchurch residents", he says, while Christchurch Borough Council "has control of only 13 per cent of spending and service delivery within Christchurch."

He also criticises the "very active campaigning by some individuals intent on opposing change for reasons known only to themselves."

Hitting out at 'inaccurate and negative' claims made during the campaign, he attaches the so called 'false claims' and Future Dorset's counter position, "so that you can be left in no doubt that the negative campaigning in Christchurch did indeed skew the poll result and as such renders the result unreliable."

He adds: "To be clear, Bournemouth Council is not prepared to consider a single unitary authority with the Borough of Poole.

"Had colleagues from Christchurch Borough Council consulted us on this matter, we would have explained this to them."

He refers to work already undertaken by the Joint Committee on council tax harmonisation, disaggregation and electoral arrangements.

And he highlights the consequences of not proceeding with the Future Dorset proposal, including the ability to deal with the needs of vulnerable adults and children and protect frontline services.

In conclusion, he says: "I would urge you to make your final decision as soon as possible. April 2019 is less than 15 months away and you will be aware of the huge amount of work necessary to make this happen.

"We owe it to our residents, the business community, partners and stakeholders to demonstrate our commitment to delivering great public services and a prosperous economic area for the long term."