Citizen's Advice Bureau bosses in Oxford say they are stunned by proposed budget cuts which could close their service.

Staff at the office in St Aldate's provide free advice to the public on issues including consumer affairs, benefits, housing, legal problems, and debt.

There are 25,000 enquiries a year, with many cries for help coming from the poorest sections of society.

But the vital lifeline could be taken away if city council bosses go ahead with plans to make large cuts from the service's annual grant of 169,680.

The council may make cuts of 3m because it has run out of savings. A proposal is being outlined to cut the CAB's grant by 50,000 next year, and 100,000 the next year.

CAB bosses say the cuts would first damage the service and then close them down. They have written to every city councillor and Oxford East MP Andrew Smith.

Roy Birch, chairman of the management committee of Oxford CAB, said: "Cuts at this level will destroy the bureau. We have increased the number of people we help by 20 per cent in the past three years."

Liberal Democrat councillor Jock Coats said he doubted whether the cuts would be allowed without finding "alternative funding".