COUNCIL leaders in Devon have written to Gordon Brown demanding the PM investigate claims a minister "pre-empted an announcement" on allowing Exeter to break away from the rest of the county.

Senior Conservatives and Liberal Democrats believe a decision on creating a unitary council for the city was taken before a consultation closed on January 19.

Communities Secretary John Denham has yet to make his final decision public.

But in a letter from Devon County Council leader John Hart, and Lib-Dem counterpart Brian Greenslade, claims Exeter MP Ben Bradshaw has been "boasting" that his preferred bid of home rule for the city has got the green light.

Mr Bradshaw, who sits in the Cabinet alongside Mr Denham, dismissed the idea as "silly".

Devon councils and voters await the outcome of a two-year process which could end the traditional two-tier structure of county and district authorities.

Mr Denham is considering two options — a single unitary council for the whole county, or one in Exeter, with the rest of Devon left unchanged.

In the letter to the Prime Minister, Cllr Hart and Cllr Greenslade suggest Mr Brown "will be disturbed to hear that one of your Cabinet colleagues has apparently been pre-empting a decision outside his purview and before the official period for consultation had closed". They allege that Mr Bradshaw has "been saying he expects a positive decision … in favour of creating a unitary Exeter council".

The letter claims the rumours "would make a mockery" of the idea a final decision had been "arrived at impartially" and would "provide fertile ground for legal action".

"It would be matter of grave concern, a discourtesy and a huge waste of public money if Mr Denham's team continued receiving face-to-face representations in London from Devon local authorities when in fact the Mr Bradshaw was giving people the impression he already knew the result."

But in response, Mr Bradshaw said: "This is a silly letter, based on rumour and gossip that has no basis in truth.

"I have never made any secret of my support for Exeter's case, which is strongly supported by all the parties in Exeter, including the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats."