County Councillor Don Seale has defended his right to stand for re-election as a district councillor in west Oxfordshire, despite his Gloucestershire address.

Last year, Labour county councillors called for Cllr Seale to resign from the executive board after he moved from Kencot in Oxfordshire to Lechlade, three miles away in Gloucestershire.

Legally, people must live, work, own land or be a tenant in the area they represent. Cllr Seale, a retired RAF wing commander, is adamant that his work as a west Oxfordshire district councillor means that he is entitled to continue to represent Oxfordshire residents.

Now, Liberal Democrat Gareth Epps, who is standing for re-election as a district councillor in the Freeland and Hanborough ward in local elections on May 2, has again questioned Cllr Seale's eligibility.

Cllr Epps said: "There seems to be a split personality at work here.

"On the one hand, there's county councillor Seale, and as a cabinet member he takes key decisions on social services, when he doesn't pay council tax in the county.

"On the other hand, there's district councillor Seale, who now claims that the district council, not County Hall, is his priority.

"I have challenged Cllr Seale's nomination by writing to the returning officer and will pursue this matter vigorously."

When the controversy first occurred last year, Chris Impey, the county council's solicitor, confirmed that Cllr Seale was eligible to stand as a councillor.

Cllr Seale, who has been representing the Filkins and Langford ward, is now standing in the Burford ward, the area he represents as a county councillor.

He said: "Living six miles away from Burford is no barrier to being an effective candidate. These are old arguments that never stood up.

"I've got plenty of connections with Burford, where I regularly play golf, and I am perfectly entitled to stand in the local elections."