WILLITON Parish Council chairman Ann Bishop resigned this week under mounting pressure from fellow councillors for her to go.

Mrs Bishop's shock decision to leave the council just six months since being re-elected as chairman could mean another by-election, the second one this year.

Newly elected vice-chairman Cllr Liz Peeks will take the chair at Monday's monthly meeting where a letter from Mrs Bishop will be read out explaining the reasons behind her sudden departure.

In her letter, she blames other councillors for wanting her out and a "personal vendetta" against her by a Williton resident, and says: "For some time I have felt that the problems which the parish council is experiencing are a result of a personal vendetta against me by a member of the public.

"Hopefully, by my resigning, the parish councillors will be able to concentrate their minds on the matters that are important to the village and not waste valuable time and money on unfounded trivia and accusations made in an attempt to bring the council into disrepute.

"All of the matters have been referred to higher authorities and found to be of no consequence."

Mrs Bishop said that a confidential meeting last month "degenerated into a situation where unacceptable personal accusations were made to me by some councillors".

She added: "I wish to thank all those councillors who have supported me through this unpleasant situation and trust that they will continue, as they have always done, to work for the interests of the council and, at the same time, not be influenced by those who are members purely to protect their own hidden agendas."

The writing was already on the wall for Mrs Bishop as Cllr Ian Aldridge was going to propose that a new chairman be formally chosen at Monday's meeting.

Cllr Aldridge sent a letter to the clerk Jean Tillotson requesting the matter to be included in next week's agenda, writing "this council requires a change of chairman forthwith".

Cllr Aldridge told the Free Press he was going to propose a new chairman because of the way an item on the agenda was held behind closed doors.

"I was unhappy with the way that the meeting had been conducted when the press and public had been excluded and I feel it was not conducted properly.

"In view of the developments with Mrs Bishop's resignation, the issue as far as I am concerned had been resolved.

"I don't think people realise that Mrs Bishop has put a lot of work in and it is not through lack of effort and commitment that she needed to consider resigning."

Cllr Aldridge said he regretted Mrs Bishop's decision to step down as councillor because he felt that was not necessary.

"If she had still been chairman at the next meeting and things had moved forward then it would have made the situation difficult."

He said he was unsure how many of the councillors backed his proposal but said: "I was not prepared to make such a proposal unless I thought there was a chance of it being carried because it could have caused division if it was not achieved."

Cllr Aldridge said he was not particularly interested in taking over as chairman himself but he would consider the position if he was asked by councillors on Monday.

"I don't see being chairman as a job to be going for or a step for political ambition that one might have as in the higher levels of local government or national government.

"What needs to be done now is for the parish council to function properly and to see it serve the community."

He added: "Mrs Bishop will be a hard act to follow, especially for the sheer volume of work she did."

Mrs Tillotson said she supported the ex-chairman's decision and revealed she had known for two weeks that councillors would be calling for a new chairman.

A minority of the council has been gunning for her resignation for several months, through what has been a difficult period for the council.

Cllr Bishop has been involved in a long running battle with a Williton resident, retired Major Michael Ham, which had boiled over into direct confrontation in the monthly meetings.

Early this year, the council filed an official complaint against Major Ham, claiming his one-man campaign against the authority amounted to harassment.

The council claimed Major Ham's questioning of the authority's accounts was costing taxpayers money and that he had been harassing Mrs Tillotson at her home.

In September, Williton elected two new councillors following the resignation of vice-chairman Eddie May and Cllr Phivos Vassiliou.

Fore Street newsagent Hugh Davies, who has been against Mrs Bishop's methods, was chosen along with sculptor Tad Mandziej, who stood for election to act as a mouthpiece for Major Ham.

The new by-election could pave the way for last month's three runners-up William Cleere, John Richards and David Scott to stand again for the one vacant post.

Mrs Bishop, who served on the council for more than eight years, said that within the past year parish council matters had taken up more and more of her time with a knock-on effect on her business and personal interests.

She said she had thoroughly enjoyed her time as councillor and that she and her husband would still go along to the monthly meetings.