The ‘tug of war’ over which parish a proposed new housing development should lie within has taken its latest twist.

Cornwall Council’s Constitution and Governance Committee has voted overwhelmingly to keep Tencreek Farm inside Menheniot’s boundary, deciding also that the Bubble Retail Park and Liskeard Tavern will move inside the Liskeard boundary.

The decision is subject to final acceptance by the Local Government Boundary Commission for England.

As things stand, Menheniot Parish Council is due to benefit from the local council tax (precept) generated from the 202 properties earmarked to be built at Tencreek.

Liskeard Town Council has argued there was a ‘natural fit’ between the proposed housing at Tencreek and the rest of Liskeard and that people there would ‘think they were in Liskeard’.

The counter arguments put forward by Menheniot were that Tencreek Farm had long been inside the Menheniot boundary and that any benefits arising from housing development there should remain with the residents and not go to Liskeard.

Cllr John Conway (Con, Launceston South) gave the example of how a place name might not always reflect its proper location.

He pointed out that Newquay Airport wasn’t actually in Newquay - but covered three separate parishes.

No-one was suggesting that the boundary there should be changed to bring the airport into the town.

Chair of Menheniot Parish Council Jerry Tucker said: ‘I’m delighted that the governance committee has agreed with us that the people best placed to decide which parish our new residents at Tencreek Farm should live in are those people themselves. We have consistently taken the view that when – and only when – Tencreek is developed, we will ask those new residents which parish they would prefer to live in and whose parish precept they would prefer to pay.

“During the most recent consultation on the boundary change, the committee received just two letters of support for Liskeard’s position, but 25 from Menheniot residents asking that Tencreek remain inside our parish boundary – clear support from our people about that Tencreek should remain where it is.”