A TOWN council has been told that its decision over parking permits has "caused a war".

Members of Lyme Regis Town Council's strategy and finance committee agreed to allocate five parking spaces behind the western day huts on Monmouth Beach on a "first come first served basis" for the owners.

Eleven new chalets were built next to the day huts, after the original structures were destroyed following movement in the cliffs in 2013. In January 2015, the town council agreed each new chalet owner was to be issued with a parking permit at a cost of £350 a year - while no parking was available for day hut owners.

Cllr Stan Williams, who earlier this year called for all day hut owners to be allocated a parking space, was angered by the situation, which he claimed was giving the chalet owners "preferential parking".

He said: "I'm not happy at all with what's going on down there - there's plenty of room behind.

"We have caused a war down there - they are at war down there.

The people at the far end believe that preference is being given to the ones who have the chalets. We are now making a difference between the two groups of people.

"They will be the only 11 people in Lyme Regis who will have preferential parking where they could ask people to move out of the space."

But committee chairman, Cllr Michaela Ellis, said that a decision had already been made to grant all chalet owners a parking space.

She said: "The idea is to keep one drop-off point that is always free with a maximum waiting of 20 minutes. This is a trial for a year.

"That difference was made when the chalets were put up. There's nothing we can do about this.

"I believe that after talking to this people that we have a solution that will work. If it doesn't work this year, we will have to look at it again."

Town clerk John Wright, briefed the committee following a meeting he attended last month between day hut-owners, chalet owners and Cllr Ellis.

He said: "To try and unstitch that decision now would be fraught with difficulty.

"It is the best that we can possibly do. It suits the council because the council gets its revenue and the day hut owners because they get their parking.

"All of the people in that meeting thought it was a good idea."

In a recommendation to the committee, Mr Wright said: "All western day-hut owners can apply for parking permits which will allow them to occupy these spaces on a first come, first served basis."

Subject to full council approval, it was agreed to allow five parking spaces, as well as a designated drop off and pick up space.