Falling advertising revenue and rising poverty have been blamed for the decision to turn Torquay’s daily Herald Express into a weekly newspaper – with editor Andy Phelan insisting ‘this is not about greed”.

Torquay’s Lib Dem MP Adrian Sanders has spoken of his disappointment at losing a daily newspaper but said he understood why the decision was made.

‘I think the reality is that, though circulation is quite high, South Devon is one of the poorest areas of the country and the advertising revenue isn’t there,’he said.