A blistering attack has been launched on Colnbrook's Labour parish councillors by former chairman of the authority Peter Hood.

Speaking as a member of the public at Tuesday's virtual parish council meeting Mr Hood - who chaired the authority for 12 years - attacked the fact that six of the seven ruling Labour members did not live within the parish boundary.

He said: "Parish councils are supposed to be the closest form of Government. Colnbrook is now operated so remotely that Nicola Sturgeon might just as well be in charge."

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He accused the recently elected Labour members of lacking the proper training, saying: "The performance of the Parish Council has been going downhill.

"You are not learning to be councillors, you are making it up as you go along."

Cllr Hood said that members making planning decisions sometimes did not even know where the site they were discussing was.

He also questioned the way the new clerk to the council had been chosen - saying that the choice of Katharine Sutton for the job had not been agreed at a full council meeting.

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This was particularly embarrassing as Ms Sutton had earlier introduced herself on line at the virtual meeting, explaining it was her second day in the job.

The meeting ended after three and a half hours with members failing to agree the Parish Council precept for the year, after Conservative member Cllr Dexter Smith questioned the right of members who lived outside the parish boundary to vote on it.

The precept is the parish's portion of Slough Borough's overall Council Tax.

The precept issue and the issue of the new clerk will now be discussed at an 'extraordinary' meeting to be held in the next few days.

After the meeting parish council vice-chairman Cllr Anup Babuta - the one labour member who does live within the parish boundary - agreed the issues needed 'careful consideration'.

He said: "Mr Hood is a passionate man who would like to see the village improve.

"But we are all elected members whether he likes it or not. You cannot just come out with venom, we need to find solutions."