The future of tourist information offices in West Dorset may be left to the new Dorset Council to decide after April next year.

Bridport’s tourist office has already transferred to the town council, but similar information offices in Lyme Regis and Sherborne remain without a decision over their future.

In Dorchester the service is currently run from a desk in the town library, when it is open, and is expected to continue to do so until it is taken over by the new Dorset Council.

Dorchester Mayor Cllr David Taylor has been told that there are no plans, at the moment, to look at the future of the service in the county town.

Leisure and tourism senior officer Nick Thornley told the West Dorset overview and scrutiny committee that plans to transfer both Sherborne and Lyme Regis TICs had stalled, for different reasons.

In response to a question from council chairman Cllr Peter Shoreland he said that both offices, despite a growth in online inquiries, continue to have an important role in their communities.

“Both support local events…the function they carry out in their towns is very important,” he said.

Cllr Cheryl Reynold said that despite a delay in negotiating a deal for Lyme Regis town council to take over the tourist office the town still wanted it to happen: “We have always been interested in taking over the TIC and we want to work it out.

“It is very useful for Lyme Regis, especially for the Marine Theatre. I really can’t understand why we have continued to try and sort it out three times, but it still hasn’t happened.”

Councillors heard that the Sherborne transfer has become complicated because it had been planned to include the TIC within a new arts centre for the town, which has not yet been finally agreed and is unlikely to see progress for at least a year.

The issues of TIC transfers is now expected to be discussed again at the committee’s January meeting.