ANGRY letters are on their way to two New Forest parishes after councillors from two of the area's larger villages lashed out at district planners.

Stormy scenes erupted at a New Forest District Council planning meeting when Ashurst and Colbury Parish Council chairman Sally Arnold walked out of the chamber, protesting: "You are a lot of hypocrites, all of you."

Mrs Arnold said later that she attended the meeting as a resident and not as a councillor.

She had unsuccessfully tried to persuade the committee to reject plans for four houses in place of a bungalow at Foxhills, Ashurst, citing previous exchanges in which officers had indicated that bungalows would be preferable.

Clearly upset at Mrs Arnold's outburst and at earlier comments made by Milford on Sea parish councillor Brian Giles, committee chairman Pat Wyeth said: "I am not happy at the way parish councillors are behaving."

It was agreed that letters should be sent to the two parish councils.

Earlier, Mr Giles had said officers had failed to give the full facts on an application to build three houses in place of an existing one.

Disputing a report which claimed Hurst Barn was on a clifftop site and pointing out that it had not mentioned there was a home for disabled children nearby, he suggested officers should "keep to the actual facts, rather than misleading statements".