The former Caradon District Council's offices could be sold off under new plans approved by Cornwall Council. The council's cabinet has agreed to back a Property Transformation Plan, which could see around 270 staff moved from Luxstowe House in Liskeard to a new £200,000 local government hub in Bodmin. Many fear the changes would be financially damaging to South East Cornwall, as well as alienating the district by pushing it further from where the decisions are made.

Liskeard mayor Tony Powell said: 'I absolutely do not support the creation of a hub in Bodmin. It effectively pushes us towards the Plymouth sub-region and indicates that Cornwall ends when you get to Bodmin.

'The impact would be immense. The financial viability of the town would be put into question and huge amounts of employment would be lost.

'But all of these things are of little consequence to Cornwall Council. At the end of the day, I didn't expect anything less than Cornwall Council stripping the assets of the district councils to get itself out of debt and that's exactly what's happening.'

A spokeswoman for Cornwall Council said: 'Cornwall Council's cabinet has agreed a five-year office accommodation strategy for the council to work on how its office accommodation for administrative staff can be used to best effect. This goes hand in hand with the drive for more modern ways of working which will include flexibility for staff to allow working from home or office sites other than their main base. The strategy will need to be flexible as a process of consulting with staff, services and departments is undertaken. No buildings will be closed or sold until this consultation has been carried out.'