North Norfolk council took legal action against its own chairman for non-payment of council tax, we can reveal today.

It obtained three liability orders against Conservative councillors Annie Claussen-Reynolds and her husband Roy Reynolds, who represent Fakenham's Lancaster North ward, totalling more than £3,000.

Orders were granted against the couple in respect of £575 in 2014/15, £1,315 in 2015/16 - when Mrs Claussen-Reynolds chaired the council - and £1,195 in 2016/17.

The first two amounts have now been repaid and an arrangement is in place for a balance of £1,120 on the third, according to figures released by the council.

Liability orders were also obtained against councillors Steven Ward and Andreas Yiasimi in 2014/15 and 2015/16.

The revelations came as the authority's chief executive pledged to make councillors' arrears public, in the interests of transparency and democracy.

Sheila Oxtoby the council's chief executive said going public was 'central to the transparency and function of the democratic process', as she pledged the information would be made 'routinely available'.

'Regardless of who defaults on council tax payments, the council will not hesitate to take the appropriate action in order to recover money owed to the public purse,' she said. 'There is no preferential treatment. Councillors have an individual responsibility to be up to date with their payments, it is a matter of accountability and public confidence.'

Mr Reynolds and Mrs Claussen-Reynolds, who live on Sculthorpe Road, Fakenham, have now stood down from committee roles and outside appointments.

For Mr Reynolds these include chairing the development committee and seats on the licensing and scrutiny committees, while his wife has given up seats on the development committee, licensing and scrutiny committees. Both still receive the basic councillor's allowance of £5,000 a year.

In a statement, they said: 'Since we were elected we have unfortunately been late making council tax payments in 2014/15 and 2015/16 after facing two family bereavements and significant cash flow problems.

'We had thought that this was a private matter initially and now we realise this is a matter of public record, and subject to a freedom of information enquiry we felt we needed to explain this to our constituents.

'With hindsight we should have made voluntary arrangements for the payment of our council tax bills promptly and we would like to apologise for any inconvenience this may have caused the authority. We can only ask the people we serve to understand the position we were in and ask for their forgiveness.'

Steven Ward, former councillor for Astley Ward, was given a liability order for £807.99 in 2014/15 and £588 the following year. Mr Ward, who lives in Little Snoring, said: 'I was late paying my council tax bills in 2015/16 and 2014/15 and I can only apologise for this, it was a mistake and one that I sought to put right as soon as I could.'

Cromer councillor Andreas Yiasimi was given liability orders for £1,641.87 in 2014/15 and £1,645.53 in 2015/16. All amounts have since been paid. Mr Yiasimi, who lives on the town's St Marys Road, said: 'We are all human and sometimes make mistakes, which is what happened in this case. I was late paying but have done so in full. I can only apologise to anyone who feels aggrieved at my late payment.'