A town councillor has had the legal case he brought against the authority he sits on dismissed.

Sharone Parnes took Woodstock Town Council to the small claims court over alleged data breaches, he said.

The claim, which began in 2022, was thrown out following a hearing in Oxford on Monday August 12.

During the court action all discussions in council meetings have been held in private session but Woodstock Town Council said once it has the judgement document an official report will be shared at a full council meeting.

It is understood the case was dismissed because Cllr Parnes failed to submit the correct documentation in a timely manner.

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The judge said the case was in the public interest but the breaches would not be waivered.

Sharone Parnes lost a civil claim against the authority he sits on (Image: Contributed) Mr Parnes is now liable for the town council’s costs of £1,168.50.

Cllr Jo Lamb, who attended the hearing, wrote in Woodstock and Bladon News, that Cllr Parnes "should consider his position as a town councillor".

She added: "Hopefully all parties can now move on and council time can be spent more productively."

Mr Parnes, who has been a councillor for over 10 years, declined to comment.

In April he said he had felt hostility towards him and described the town council as operating like a "street gang".

He said: "I have often experienced what has felt to me like intimidating and insulting resentment, by some colleagues, around things like asking to record named votes, raising data protection concerns, querying out of the ordinary financial expenditures, and suggesting to consult the public before determining positions that affect the entire community.

"Sometimes some of the reactions seemed almost more like those within a stereotypical street gang than a democratic entity operating in a locality associated with the legacy of Churchill.

"But hopefully the new municipal year post-election will produce a more dynamic, open, inviting and cooperating cohort as the people of the constituency deserve better consideration and more respect, in my opinion."

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Concerns have also been raised over the competence of the council.

In March two Woodstock town councillors appeared before West Oxfordshire District Council's standards committee over allegations of breaching the council's code of conduct.

It also emerged former mayor Nick Manby-Brown used his own money to pay for the authority's Christmas gifts after concerns were raised about use of taxpayer cash.

A financial report was promised imminently but ending up arriving 10-12 weeks later than anticipated. 

And a report presented at a meeting in April also noted concern about the previous administration giving away half of the civic budget to one of the four town churches.

This, it said, was a breach of the financial standards as the request should have been taken to full council for agreement.

And attending the AGM in March, Labour's prospective parliamentary candidate for Bicester & Woodstock Veronica Oakeshott said she was "astonished" to hear Mr Manby-Brown accusing councillors of being so focused on opposing housing development that they forgot to negotiate money from developers to help pay for infrastructure.