Selby old soldier John Collier has reacted with fury and dismay after hearing that his old regiment may be disbanded as part of defence cuts.

The war veteran was responding to reports that the Prince of Wales's Own Regiment of Yorkshire faces the axe in the most radical overhaul of Britain's armed forces since the Second World War.

If the cuts go ahead, ten regiments could be disbanded and 9,000 troops made redundant.

Mr Collier, 66, of Petre Avenue, Selby, is chairman of the Selby branch of the regimental association and a member of its executive committee.

He saw action in the Suez conflict in 1956 before being demobbed in 1958.

He said: "My regiment is over 300 years old and there is a hell of a lot of pride and tradition.

"It's the oldest regiment in Yorkshire and when we heard reports that it was under threat we were furious.

"My phone has been red-hot with calls from the lads in the Selby area. They are deeply unhappy.

"There are about 25 of us who still meet every month in Selby Working Men's Club and we are all very proud to have served with such a historic regiment."

The cuts are being considered by the Ministry of Defence because of troop withdrawals from Northern Ireland, and the first regiments may be disbanded within 12 months.

The Prince of Wales's Own - which has its headquarters in Tower Street, York - is about to complete a two-year tour of duty in Ulster and return to Catterick Garrison.

Mr Collier said: "A lot of the Selby lads served in Malaya in the early 1950s, fighting the communist terrorists.

"The world has never seemed more dangerous and to start disbanding regiments is lunacy."

He said the association's executive committee would decide on its response at a meeting on December 7 at Worsley Barracks, in York.

An MoD spokeswoman said that Defence Secretary Geoff Hoon had spoken about how the armed forces might become more streamlined, but did not release any names of units which might be affected.

She said: "Mr Hoon did say we would have to make some tough choices, but until the White Paper is published we cannot speculate."

Updated: 10:52 Wednesday, November 26, 2003