Mistley Parish Council has summoned Michael Dew, the Tendring District councillor for Mistley and Manningtree, to its end-of-year meeting on Monday 22 December to account for his recent actions.

On 9 December  Dew voted against a motion put forward by Conservative district councillors Sarah Candy and Carlo Guglielmi that: 'This Council finds the recently erected fence at Mistley Quay to be 
detrimental to the visual amenity, harmful to the character of the area and contrary to the Council's aspirations to protect and safeguard the Manningtree and Mistley Conservation area."

There is unanimous opposition to the fence among Mistley residents.  And a Lib Dem leaflet recently circulated in Mistley expresses his party's opposition to the fence.

But votes on the motion were split down party lines, with 28 Conservative and Harwich Community Representative votes for the motion, and 29 against from the ruling alliance councillors. Lib Dem 
councillor Mr Dew also voted against debating the same motion on 13 October. Dew's vote effectively withdraws local ward support for council leader David Lines' proposal to mediate talks between action 
group Free the Quay, Mistley Parish Council and quay owners Trent  Wharfage.

'There is a lot of anger about this, and a number of residents have called on him to resign immediately,' said Mistley Parish Councillor and Free the Quay member Kate Worsley. 'Mistley people don't want 
this fence, but Dew has ignored us. His actions are totally undemocratic.  He cannot use the issue in his party literature to garner votes, and then ignore us when it comes to a political vote.

If he had wished to remain neutral on this issue then he could have abstained.  As it is, he is flying in the face of public opinion.'

Mistley Parish Council meets at 7.30pm on 22 December at the Church Room, Chapel Cut (runs between Harwich Road opposite Atlas Autos, and California Road). www.essexinfo.net/mistleypc/. All members of the public are welcome to attend.