Defiant pensioner Eileen Murphy says she is willing to lie down on the steps at 10 Downing Street to protest at the plan to set up a parish council at Jaywick.

A petition opposing the scheme was signed by 111 residents - only one person was in favour. Campaigners say the majority are being ignored.

Villagers are angry that calls for a referendum have been spurned.

Tendring Council has already prepared a draft order for a new parish and council for Jaywick after clearance by deputy prime minister John Prescott.

The order is due to be reported to members of Tendring Council's community committee on June 9 and the parish and its council will come into force from April 1 next year.

But Mrs Murphy, a member of Jaywick Sixty Plus Club, said the fight is far from over.

"Many people living down here are not happy with this and if the council think we are going to give up now they can think again," she said.

"If nothing happens soon we will be going to Downing Street to make our feelings known. I am quite prepared to lie down on the steps until the Government listens to us."

Mrs Murphy said that she had already taken up the case with the local government ombudsman, the parliamentary ombudsman and Harwich MP Ivan Henderson.

The residents have the backing of Essex county and Tendring district councillor Roy Smith, who said he had been convinced by the strength of feeling against the move to create a parish council.

"While I was canvassing for the elections, I knocked on around 600 doors and not one person wanted a parish council," he said.

"I have 200 letters against it and it seems to me this is being forced on us. Local democracy seems to have been thrown out of the window."

Tendring Council first took up the issue after receiving a petition signed by 416 people calling for a parish council. It then got one with 527 against it.

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