A Fylde MP says council tax payers will end up footing the £16m bill for government proposals to merge Lancashire and Cumbria police forces .

Wyre and Lancaster MP, Ben Wallace, claims the public support of the two-force merger by Home Secretary - Charles Clarke - earlier this week could see Lancashire residents paying millions of pounds more on their annual council tax bills.

Mr Wallace's comments follow recent countywide claims that the merger could see council tax rise by 13 per cent in Lancashire but decrease by 22 per cent in Cumbria.

He said: "The creation of a single Lancashire and Cumbria police force isn't a merger, it's a forced marriage which the vast majority of people don't want.

"A single police force covering an area from Penrith to Preston will erode local accountability, and most of the £16 million cost will be met by local people, adding even more onto Wyre's council tax bills.

"The Home Secretary has dismissed out of hand the cheaper and less disruptive option of the two forces sharing service in spite of the fact that this has been supported by the Association of Police Authorities."

Plans to merge the 43 individual police forces in England and Wales into larger, regional forces were first introduced to help the justice system cope with the increasing demand on service brought about by terrorism and organised crime.

Each force now has until February 24 to offer a response to Mr Clarke's recommendations.

Lancashire police were yesterday unavailable for comment on the financial impact of the merger for the county's council tax payers.

But Acting Chief Constable, Steve Finigan, and Lancashire Police Authority Chair, Malcom Doherty, released a statement confirming that the force were considering the proposal.

They said: "Forces and authorities will be working closely with the Home Office to assess the implications of this new information."