The Mayor of March claims the leader of Cambridgeshire County Council Steve Count “has shown utter contempt for the town council” over a public meeting to discuss Estover playing fields.

Councillor Kit Owen is furious that Cllr Count, also a March town councillor, has kept colleagues in the dark about his proposals for Estover.

Cllr Count says those proposals will be unveiled at a public meeting on Friday – and if anyone wants to know, including other councillors, they can turn up like everyone else.

But the mayor believes Cllr Count is “not a team player” and accused him of “going out on a limb in one capacity or another. Town councillors find it confusing which capacity you are acting regarding Estover –be it town, county councillor or county leader. Each of which has a different bearing in your actions and where you are coming from.”

Cllr Owen added: “Unless there is more intense pressure from councillors, I am not at this time intending to introduce or report this expression of contempt to the conduct committee of any authority. I believe some of their conclusions can be construed as farcical with very limited powers, tantamount to a slap on the wrist or session on the naughty step.”

However in a email widely circulated to colleagues, Cllr Owen says both and other councillors would be “pleased to receive any explanation and an apology for the manner in which this mater of Estover and the Friday meeting has been pursued”.

Cllr Count said that as the mayor’s email was confidential to him and other councillors he would not be commenting on it.

“I am not surprised you have a copy – but disappointed,” he said.

Any reply to the mayor would be confidential and all would be explained at the meeting.

“I do my best as a councillor- I do genuinely believe that,” said Cllr Count.