A Tory councillor has launched a High Court bid to clear his name after he was suspended for sending damaging emails.

Councillor Ian Wilson sent a series of emails questioning the competence of a planning chief and his staff.

He was suspended for a year from Lewes District Council on the recommendation of the Adjudication Panel for England.

The panel, sitting as a three- member tribunal, ruled one email was a personal attack on the "professionalism, honesty and competence" of Lindsay Frost, the council's planning director.

Others were said to be "disrespectful" and "damaging" to officers in the planning department.

Coun Wilson, 58, is now taking action in the High Court and has served papers on the Standards Board, Adjudication Council of England and Lewes District Council in a bid to get his 12-month suspension quashed.

The councillor, who was elected for the Ouse Valley and Ringmer ward in 2003, said: " I am looking to get this suspension put aside. I feel have been unfairly treated."

The emails were about planning applications for a £4.2 million development of 83 homes at Forges Field, Ringmer, in Coun Wilson's ward.

Coun Wilson, a semi-retired chartered insurer, was angry an article appeared in the magazine Construction Weekly suggesting the Forges Field development was a done deal.

He accused Mr Frost of "giving free advice to developers".

The action was initially brought by Lewes District Council on the grounds Coun Wilson had failed to comply with the council's code of conduct in sending an email "containing disparaging comments" to Mr Frost, copied to several other officers and members of the council.

Coun Wilson made no representations to the panel or the Ethical Standards Officer prior to the hearing of the panel on July 7.

The panel in its submission noted he had failed to co-operate. but Coun Wilson said he did not co-operate as he could not be sure of fair treatment.

He said he was attempting to raise a legitimate concern and did not consider this constituted a personal attack.