Middlesbrough councillor criticised for French chateau purchase resigns

Ashley Waters and family are hoping to open the Chateau as a B&B when it is renovated

A councillor criticised for renovating a chateau in France while representing a ward in Middlesbrough has resigned.

Ashley Waters, who represented North Ormesby on Middlesbrough Council, said he had faced "horrific levels of abuse" over his French home.

Mr Waters said he had planned to stay in the UK but having now resigned he will relocate to France.

Middlesbrough Council confirmed his resignation and said a by-election will be held "in due course".

Mr Waters and family bought the castle in rural Normandy for £250,000 in November

Councillors do not have to live in the area they serve and Mr Waters would not have broken any rules if he had lived in France.

He said the support from people in the ward had been "superb" but said he had been smeared by other councillors.

"The posts about myself and the time I have spent in France have been complete fabrication," he said in a post on his Facebook page, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

"The councillors that have wanted to cause trouble and will continue to cause trouble will make Middlesbrough a worse place and that is not fair for the fantastic residents of the town."

Mr Waters, who was elected to the North Ormesby ward as an independent in May 2019, bought Chateau De Lalacelle in Normandy with his partner Terry Short and other family members last November.

Mr Waters added: "The plan for me was to continue to live and work in the UK for the next couple of years until my term was up, and then move out to France.

"Now that I have resigned, I will be moving there permanently."