LEADERS of councils across Hampshire fear that a planned radical shake-up of the way the county is policed could leave rural areas with less cover.

The shake-up, which was confirmed yesterday, and will be implemented in April 2006, would see the force re-organised from its existing ten command units to six.

Under the new structure New Forest, Test Valley and Eastleigh would all be classed as one operational command unit while Winchester would be joined with Fareham and Gosport.

The existing police units covering Southampton, the Isle of Wight and Portsmouth will remain.

Leaders of the county's rural local authorities fear that the re-organisation could mean that police will concentrate on urban areas, leaving them without adequate police cover.

Fareham council leader Sean Woodward said he would have liked to have seen more consultation over the setting of the boundaries before the proposals were put forward.

Eastleigh leader Keith House said: "The proposal to merge Eastleigh's police management into a joint team covering the rural New Forest, as well as all of Test Valley, raises serious questions.

"Eastleigh will be the only urban area of size in a large and rural area.

"There must be a risk that we'll see a reduction in funds for our area if crime statistics for the new policing area disguise figures for our urban areas."

Leader of Winchester City Council Sheila Campbell added: "I very much hope that when we need a policeman, we will get one."

A further period of consultation will now take place with county leaders.

Chief Constable Paul Kernaghan said: "We will continue to engage with people as we mould and shape Hampshire Constabulary for the future.

"There is still a lot of work to be done to make these proposals a reality."