A scathing attack on the new Cabinet system at West Sussex County Council has been launched by those who voted for it in the first place.

The results of a questionnaire show that just over half the county council do not believe the system has made the authority more accountable.

Fifty eight per cent said it did not allow them the chance to influence decisions taken by the Cabinet, while only two per cent of the members quizzed said they believed the new system was easy for the public, media and local organisations to understand.

The survey is now expected to lead to a major overhaul of the system, which is being run as a one-year pilot scheme.

But councillors have already been warned that the Government's Democratic Renewal legislation has made it impossible to return to the old committee system.

The council launched its new system in May with key decisions being taken by a seven-strong Cabinet whose work is policed by a series of select committees.

One of the main aims was to speed up the decision-making process, but councillors are sharply divided over whether that has worked with 36 per cent saying the council is now more efficient and 29 per cent disagreeing.

Lib Dem leader Councillor James Walsh said many members of the council felt they were being consulted only after decisions had been taken by Cabinet members.

He added: "The results of the questionnaire are very scathing and it shows there is widespread cross-party dissatisfaction with the way the system is working."

But Coun Walsh said he would not like to see the county switch to the Government's alternative option of an elected mayor similar to London's Ken Livingstone.

He added: "I think that would concentrate far too much power in one pair of hands."

Among the ideas suggested by councillors to improve the system are the development of more area committees to bring decision making closer to the public.

Councillors will get their chance to discover what the public think about the new system early next year after a consultation exercise ordered by the Government which is expected to cost £30,000.

The council has to meet a deadline of June 2001 to submit full details of its final management system to the Department of Environment, Transport and the Regions.