A NEW tourism guide which promised to put Exmoor, West Somerset and the Quantocks among the country's top visitor destinations could be facing competition - from its predecessor in a new guise.

Exmoor 2010 - now hailed as the official districtwide brochure - is being produced by Active Exmoor, which is part of the Exmoor Tourism Partnership, the successor to the collapsed tourism body Visit Exmoor.

But John Richards, who steered the production of its forerunner, Exmoor Coast and Country, is on the verge of embarking on a rival guide, which he expects to call Exmoor Coast to Country Guide 2010.

Mr Richards is a director of the Exmoor Tourism Association, which took over the running of the old ECC guide for the last two years of its life, with the help of a £15,000 grant from West Somerset Council.

Active Exmoor, which has previously produced its own specialist brochure, was controversially awarded the contract to produce a new guide for 2010 in June, with the promise of £24,000 from the district council to cover any potential deficit in production costs.

But Mr Richards, who oversaw the production of the old guide in a voluntary capacity for a number of years, claimed the successor publication would not be of a similar quality.

He is company secretary of Visit Exmoor Ltd, which was set up to market tourism in the greater Exmoor area and whose managing director Helmut Kafka is prepared to put cash into the rival production.

Mr Kafka said Mr Richards had great experience of producing quality guides and although the new guide would not have the benefit of a council grant, other funds would be available to it.

Mr Richards said an advertising rate card for Exmoor Coast to Country Guide 2010 had been drawn up and was ready to go.

He said a final decision on whether to go ahead with the rival publication - which would be run in conjunction with a "top ranking website"- would be made in about a week when the response from potential advertisers during the current "hard times" had been judged.

"But we are looking very, very carefully at doing it as we think it can be managed," he said.

"It is great to be fully supported at last in the production of a premium guide for the area and I look forward to working with a professional team in a company set up to market tourism."

ETA chairman Antony Brunt, in a recent letter to all his members, said he wanted to clarify the position on the organisation's stance on next year's guide.

He said a unanimous decision was reached by all directors early in 2009 that they could not justify the publication of a 2010 guide, but despite falling advertising revenues in recent years, the ETA was keen to ensure that there continued to be a printed guide for the area.

Mr Brunt said the ETA - which, along with the district council and the Exmoor National Park Authority is also a member of the ETP - had given its full backing to Exmoor 2010.

And in the wake of the announcement that a rival guide could be produced, district council deputy leader Cllr Michael Downes sent a message to all tourism operators on behalf of the ETP.

Cllr Downes said Mr Richards had previously stated that he did not have time to publish a 2010 edition of the old ECC guide and that its directors - who include Mr Richards - had decided not to publish one.

"In light of this, the ETP awarded the contract to produce a new-look guide, Exmoor 2010, to Active Exmoor.

"Their reasons for deciding to combine the Exmoor and Active Exmoor guides was to eliminate duplication, which benefits advertisers, and to also make the best economic use of distribution channels to provide maximum coverage and improved marketing opportunities for local tourism businesses.

"A single dedicated guide also offers visitors a high quality one-stop publication which tells them all they need to know about Exmoor, the Quantocks and West Somerset.

"We are confident that we have an exceptional product with Exmoor 2010 and all ETP members are fully committed to it.

"It is an excellent publication and, as such, the natural successor to the old Coast and Country."