AFTER months of rows over the parish council allegedly hiding its business from the public, the public will be guaranteed greater access and transparency on council affairs by a new Government-sponsored edict.

Bramshott and Liphook Parish councillors have until January 1 to adopt national guidelines on how much information is made available to the public via its website and through its published agendas and minutes.

The "template" is been handed down to every parish council in the country by the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO), which regulates the Freedom of Information and Data Protection Acts.

John Carne resigned from the council, back in April after walking out of a behind-closed-doors session, which followed a public meeting, stating that he had repeatedly complained to the council about the excess of secrecy and arguments about procedural practices, which he felt were becoming intolerable for him.

And in May Barry Hope, a former chairman of the parish council and one of the candidates standing in this week's forthcoming by-election stated in The Herald he had written several times to the parish council to request information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000, but had been given various reasons why it cannot be released.

This week councillors considered the draft model publication scheme, at the full council meeting on Monday.

The new edict affecting the parish council website as well as all published papers, has to be agreed on and adopted by the end of the year.

But councillors moved swiftly to assure the public that the electoral register for the parish will not be available online.

The guidelines suggest that maximum information should be made available, via the website, supported by a free print out available to parishioners from the parish office.

Councillor Robert Evans suggested that the council website should follow the example of corporate websites, by setting out objectives, missions and targets.

That approach was favoured by chairman Dr John Tough, although he stated that the publication scheme related to routine information as well as more contentious issues, which can be put on the website very quickly as soon as it is available.

Parish clerk Tony Groves pointed out that there are restrictions and that archive files, which were in storage, could not be made available on the website and would take extra time to be made available for inspection in due course.

He also explained that draft information will not be subject to the publication scheme nor will the electoral roll, which is available at the parish council offices for inspection only, but cannot be accessed through the website or photocopied.

Councillor Philip Jordan supported the publication scheme but felt that even more information should be made available on the council's website.

He proposed to put the midyear and end-of-year audits, as well as internal audits and the finalised budget and parish council members expenses on the website together with targets set by the parish council and consultation papers of interest to the public.

Dr Tough felt that the finance and policy committee should approve which financial details should be published on the website as and when they are available, but was forced to come to a decision to go ahead with the proposal made by Mr Jordan, by the majority of councillors voting in favour.

Dr Tough also said that the publication scheme would need to be revised regularly, suggesting every six months, and that current contents, including updated routine information and press releases, should be put on the website immediately.

But he reminded councillors that all contents to be published were subject to data protection and had to be in line with the Public Disclosure Act.

He also assured everyone that it was not a proposal to go paperless and that copies of the website contents would still be available from the council office.

The council already publishes most of the items suggested in the scheme.