CORNWALL would have a dedicated Government minister under plans drawn up for David Cameron, the WMN has learned.

The Tory leader is being urged to make the appointment if he becomes Prime Minister, in recognition of the particular challenges the county faces.

Under the proposal, Labour's post of Minister for the South West – which is currently held by Jim Knight – would be scrapped, amid confusion about the purpose of the role.

However, in a move likely to create tensions across the River Tamar, areas like Devon and Somerset would not receive the same special representation in a Conservative government.

Instead, some key areas of the country would have a minister looking out for them in addition to a role in a Government department.

The proposed appointments will draw comparisons with Tory heavyweight Michael Heseltine, who was dubbed Minister for Merseyside for his direct involvement in turning Liverpool around in the early 1908s. A senior Tory source said: "The regional ministers haven't worked because they're too thinly spread and no-one knows what they're for.

"But there's a real case for somewhere like Cornwall – because of literally how far it is from Westminster and historic deprivation – and some cities, for issues like regeneration which need that extra focus."

Almost three years ago, Mr Cameron appointed Hertford and Stortford MP Mark Prisk as "shadow minister for Cornwall".

In a YouTube video, the Tory leader said he wanted Mr Prisk to "listen to people in Cornwall, to understand their concerns, to get to grips with the issues and report back to me".

It is understood the Government post would play a similar role, bringing together Whitehall departments and agencies, though it is not clear if Mr Prisk would keep the appointment.

Liberal Democrat MPs in the county have been highly critical of Mr Prisk's role, claiming political interference from the "shadow of a fictional minister".

There have been accusations in the Commons that Mr Prisk was taking on casework which should be dealt with by local MPs.

Tensions were running especially high because the Lib-Dems are defending every seat in Cornwall against a resurgent Conservative Party.

The WMN also revealed Mr Prisk claimed up to £300 a time in Commons expenses to drive to Cornwall despite there being no "minister for Cornwall" for him to shadow. He has highlighted his pedigree as a "born and bred Cornishman" who wants to "make sure the needs of Cornwall are heard loud and clear".

A policy document drawn up for Mr Cameron is believed to propose axeing the nine regional ministers, created by Gordon Brown soon after becoming Prime Minister in 2007.

With the South West region stretching from Penzance to Swindon, critics have claimed Mr Knight – and his predecessor in the role Ben Bradshaw – have struggled to cover the area effectively.

The South West Minister is tasked with "providing a clear sense of strategic direction for their region" and must also give "citizens a voice in central Government, ensuring that Government policy takes account of the differing needs of the nine English regions".

But promises of seeing the minister at the dispatch box to take questions in Parliament on the work of regional bodies, and on regional strategies, were shelved.

The Tory plan would chime with the party's stated policy to dismantle many of Labour's regional structures.

Last month, Mr Cameron's attack on Labour's regional policy agenda drew the biggest cheer in his speech at the party's spring forum in Brighton.

He told delegates: "We really are going to look at those regions, and we're going to say those spatial strategies, those transport plans, those assemblies, most of those regional development agencies, those regional targets – the whole lot is going."

A spokesman for the Conservative leader insisted no final decisions had been made.