COUNTY council plans to take back responsibility for road repairs and maintenance in Kent could leave district councils as much as £3million out of pocket.

KCC has announced it is to end long-standing partnerships with district councils in which the job of looking after roads and deciding how money should be spent was shared.

County transport chiefs insist the move will save money in the long run and overcome public confusion about who is responsible for the work.

But district councils have disputed the claim that money can be saved and suggested KCC ought to consider compensation if it goes ahead.

Meanwhile, the plan has come under fire on another front with unions complaining they had not been properly consulted on something that would affect 300 employees.

Maidstone Borough Council chief executive David Petford said: “The reality is that we have fixed costs and overheads that will not be reduced just because we no longer have a business arrangements for highways.

“In Maidstone’s case, that could be around £200,000 a year. We may be able to reduce that over time but that is quite a large cost and if you add it up for all the districts, it could be between £2million and £3million. It does bring into question the cost argument.”

While staff working for district councils are likely to transfer back to KCC, districts would be left with offices and other premises that would be redundant, he added.

Asked if KCC ought to consider compensation, Mr Petford said: “Both sides do need to sit down and talk about these issues and make sure any arrangements are the best for all parties.”

Unison said it was campaigning to halt the plan. It fears the service will eventually be privatised. In a statement, it said: “This decision is not based on the interests of better service provision or staff but anticipating future local government structure and the control of services within them.”

Under KCC’s plan, the existing 15 separate highways units would be replaced by three “divisional” offices and a central headquarters.

Only three district councils have come out in favour of the change.