CUMBRIA'S business community appears to be divided over whether the county should have a single unitary authority under the proposed shake-up of local government.

The independently-run web site, Regeneratecumbria.com, invited visitors to give their views on the issue, but the results were far from conclusive.

While 32.6 per cent of respondents favoured the idea of creating a single council for Cumbria, a further 30.1 per cent were against the proposal, and the remainder either felt they were not in a position to make a choice, or wanted other options to be considered.

The vast majority of people taking part in the survey were aged between 25 and 65. South Lakeland and Eden attracted the highest number of respondents, with Barrow having the lowest.

Regeneratecumbria.com has posted the survey results on its site, and included the comments made by each respondent, although they have not been individually named.

There were 110 separate comments from those supporting a single council, compared with 104 by those opposing the idea of a unitary authority.

People who supported replacing the two tier local government system with one council felt it would save money; reduce bureaucracy; avoid duplication between councils; and cut out public confusion on councils' responsibilities.

However, those against a unitary authority feared a single council would be too large and remote; council services would become too centralised; and local democracy would be diluted.

In addition, there were 34 comments by people who wanted other options, such as a north/south or east/west split, to be considered.

The web site is the brainchild of Tom Bell, who works in the county's regeneration sector and launched the online initiative as a way of pointing firms in the right direction for help and support, as well as giving businesses a platform to express their views.

Mr Bell said he did not seek to draw any conclusions from the survey, and would be presenting the results to Cumbria's six MPs and the county and district council leaders.

"The aim of the survey was to enable the views of people in Cumbria to be gathered so as to positively assist the process of consultation about what is undoubtedly a significant issue for the county," he said.