A WARNING that Netley Abbey's popular village carnival may die has been sounded over a demand for a 700 per cent increase in insurance premium.

Carnival chairman Terry Hammond says the future of the event has been put in jeopardy because Hampshire County Council is insisting the carnival increases its cover for public liability from £5m to £10m.

After winding through the streets of the village, the carnival procession ends up in the Hampshire County Council-owned Royal Victoria Country Park where a supporting carnival show is usually staged.

Mr Hammond says the county council has demanded increased cover which would send the insurance bill rocketing from £100 to over £700 for the three-hour carnival event.

He said: "This is bureaucracy gone mad. It will simply bankrupt our funds. The amount they are asking for is twice what we usually make at the carnival which we then dish out to good causes."

Mr Hammond added: "We have telephoned all the leading insurance companies, including Lloyds of London, all of whom refused to offer us £10m cover.

"One well-known company told us that they had never heard of anything so ridiculous. They said: 'What are you doing, shooting David Beckham out of a cannon?'"

He claimed all the high street companies confirmed that £5m was the norm and to take out a higher amount would require a specialist broker at a cost of over £700.

Besides placing a question mark against the future of the Netley event, Mr Hammond also warned that the decision could lead to the collapse of thousands of community activities throughout the country if all authorities took Hampshire County Council's lead.

Hampshire County Council leader Ken Thornber said: "Hampshire County Council has a duty to ensure that its own property and land is adequately covered for all possible risks by our contractors or people using our facilities in this increasingly litigious society.

"If we were sued, it's money that would have to be put on the council tax and £10m less to spend on schools and older people's services. Other county councils already require this level of cover."

Councillor Thornber added that the county had agreed to Mr Hammond's request for a public liability figure of £5m in May due to the fact that the carnival was just a few weeks away - but had stressed that level of cover would not be acceptable next year.

"There is a process for reviewing the level of risk and, if appropriate, acceptance of a lower level of cover is being developed.

"In the meantime, we will consider individual requests so long as details of why the cover is unobtainable and a thorough risk assessment are included."