It is the issue which has ignited public fury in Honiton; a series of disputes stretching back almost eight years, which has left locals in despair with the town council.

Now there are calls for every councillor to resign and seek re-election.

Action group, Honiton Residents, has even started a petition following a series of major disagreements within the town council going back to 2012 - when plans for the The Beehive first emerged.

These include:

• May 2012: Decision to build The Beehive – opposed by two Town Polls. These are not binding on the council and HTC had lots of reasons and evidence in favour. HTC voted to build; 12 votes to three.

• Dec 2012: How will the Beehive be Managed? By a HTC run company, or by a separate charity? Five current members of HTC were opposed to the charity; Howard, Coombs, McNally, Taylor, Zarczynski.

• 2012 - present day: Overspend on the building of The Beehive (Baileys Dispute) – currently ongoing with court case pending against Baileys (Architects). 

• 2014: How much should HTC be paying in service charges to Honiton Community Complex Co (Charity that leases and runs The Beehive)?

• June 2017 - December 2019: HTC questioned invoices relating to the service charge submitted by HCC (The Beehive) and subsequently ceased payment for two years while negotiations took place.

• July 2019/February 2020: Lack of public confidence with co-option of councillors.

This has resulted in the following concerns around Honiton Town Council's conduct:

• Non-compliance with transparency code regarding publication of expenditure.

• The very large expenditure on legal fees.

• The over-use of Part B agendas and the lack of information regarding Part B issues.

• Two successive Clerks going on sick leave. The first resulting in over £40,000 being spent in employing an interim clerk and deputy clerk.

• The large number of councillors who have left the council since 2015.

• The lack of confidence of some councillors and members of the public in the co-option procedure.

• The open row at the council meeting this month (February) that resulted in the Clerk and several councillors walking out.

Click the red button below for more information on the petition currently being circulated, calling for all councillors to stand down and for a 'fresh start' at Honiton Town Council.