A CONTROVERSIAL plan to introduce street wardens in part of Romsey and other Test Valley areas could be confined to the history books in less than three years, according to councillors.

The scheme, given a £320,700 boost by the government, could see the first wardens patrolling next summer if Test Valley Borough Council match the government grant.

But with local authorities needing to find 100 per cent funding for wardens after just two and a half years, several councillors at last night's full council meeting in Romsey questioned whether taxpayers would be willing to foot the bill.

A vote agreed in principle to underwrite the government's funding commitment.

Weyhill councillor Norman Arnell said street wardens were an "abrogation of the government's responsibility to properly protect the public".

He said: "The wardens cannot be coercive, and have very limited powers to apprehend troublemakers. "Council tax bills will rise by eight per cent to pay for the wardens when the government pull their funding.

"If they were prepared to pay 100 per cent for them indefinitely and properly train them and give them greater powers of arrest I would back the idea. But they won't." Romsey Abbey councillor Mark Cooper backed the wardens scheme, but said The Test Valley Citizens Panel - made up of 1,000 citizens in the borough - and the remainder of the public should have the "final say" on whether it should continue after 30 months.

If the scheme is given the thumbs up, wardens will appear in Woodley Green, the Banning Street area of Romsey, Valley Park, North Baddesley and Andover.

Wardens would work in pairs - some spending an entire shift walking the streets, others helping with domestic housing problems, and a third set of wardens, known as super wardens, will tackle litter.