A Falmouth town councillor stormed out of Monday night's planning meeting after objecting to an application by the committee's chairman.

The chairman, councillor for Boslowick ward Alan Jewell, has hosted campsite visitors on his land in the off-season without planning permission for years.

Now he is seeking to legitimise that use with an application for a certificate of lawfulness, to which the town council raised no objection.

Fellow Boslowick councillor Roger Bonney told the committee: "You're making decisions that will come round and bite you in the a**," and exited after the vote.

Councillor Jewell, who also sits on Cornwall Council's Central Sub-Area Planning Committee, has hosted visitors in the off-season at his Pennance Mill Farm campsite without planning permission since the late 1990s.

At least one family has also lived at the campsite permanently for "a long time," according to councillor Steve Eva.

Falmouth Packet:

Councillor Alan Jewell

He was reported by a member of the public and after a visit from council enforcement officers is now seeking permission for use of the site in the off-season, which is likely to be granted as the activities have been going on openly and unchallenged for more than ten years.

Councillor Bonney contended that councillor Jewell had "been a bit naughty in the past" by extending his campsite, and that by supporting this application the council would be "opening the floodgates" to more visitors.

A majority of councillors did not object to the application however, and councillor Steve Eva said: "I would support this application because I know one family that would be homeless if this isn't given and I wouldn't want to see that."

Falmouth Town Council voted not to raise any objection to councillor Jewell's application as it had no reason to believe the land is not being used as he claims it is.

This is not the first time councillor Jewell has attracted controversy. In April 2017, developer Westcountry Land launched a judicial review against Cornwall Council, claiming that councillor Jewell had failed to declare a conflict of interest relating to a competing campsite. No further action has been taken.

He was also ordered to re-plant trees that he cut down illegally and set on fire in May 2018.