SEX swap computer manager Andrew Lynall told an industrial tribunal he was sacked after telling his boss he wanted to be called Eleanor.

The 47-year-old handed New Forest company director John Freeman a memo entitled Transition Gender Role, informing him about his planned sex change. But within days of telling Mr Freeman about the "gender reassignment" he was given a letter of dismissal, it was claimed.

Bespectacled Mr Lynall, now known as Ms Lynall, left his £27,000-a-year job as a marine surveyor with yachting firm Freeman and Partners Ltd in December last year.

He duly changed his name by deed poll to Eleanor Mary Lynall and is currently awaiting surgery to complete the process.

He is now taking Mr Freeman to an industrial tribunal in Southampton, claiming sexual discrimination and unfair dismissal.

Mr Lynall first joined the company, based in Fordingbridge in May 1996, and later become head of its technical services department.

He said: "I suffer from gender identity disorder and during the course of 1998 made a decision to present myself to the world as a female.

"I've had several years of counselling and am now in the early stages of medical treatment and have changed my name by deed poll. I came out to colleagues gradually through the year and friends at work had been aware for some time."

He told the hearing that he had sent the memo on November 20 and two days later Mr Freeman had come into his office and told him he would not allow him to act out the female role on the company's behalf.

"Nothing else was said and then on November 25 he placed a letter on my desk at the end of the day saying: "You might not like this," Ms Lynall, of Pennywell Gardens, New Milton, said. "It was a letter of dismissal."

Mr Freeman claims Ms Lynall was dismissed after his firm got into financial difficulty. He told the tribunal: "The business deteriorated dramatically and we were clearly falling short of our break-even budget.

"I held meetings with Ms Lynall about serious concerns over her department's continuing poor results. By November 25 the financial situation couldn't be allowed to continue."

He said as sole director of the company he had written to Ms Lynall giving her notice. Asked about being told of Ms Lynall's plans, he said: "I have known Andrew for 30 years and it was a considerable surprise to me.

"But that is as a personal friend rather than an employer.''

The hearing was adjourned.

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