The Conservatives are demanding the immediate publication of the report into who signed the official letter in the name of Cheshire East's leader and deputy which appeared to support the controversial Adlington new town proposal.

Councillors were told in April the report on the investigation into who authorised the letter, which bore the electronic signatures of council leader Nick Mannion (Lab) and deputy Michael Gorman (Ind), was expected by the end of May.

It still hasn't materialised.

Now Cllr Liz Wardlaw, deputy leader of the Conservative group on Cheshire East, has put forward a notice of motion to next week's meeting of full council calling for the report to be published 'immediately' and then referred to the audit and governance committee for consideration.

The letter at the centre of the investigation was sent to New Towns Task Force chair Sir Michael Lyons in June of last year.

It appeared to show the council's support for plans for a new 20,000-home town at Adlington – when the council is unanimously opposed to it.

It has since emerged Cllr Gorman was not even in the country when his signature was put to the letter – and that he had not agreed to it.

Both leaders have objected to the new town proposal and said they want to get to the bottom of how the letter was sent with that wording.

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The Tory motion also calls on the council to 'note that decisions about the council's budgetary and policy framework are reserved by law to full council'.

Essentially, the Conservatives are arguing no-one had the authority to send the letter without it going to full council first.

Adlington is not on the shortlist of seven sites the government has since put forward for possible new towns.

But many councillors feel the 'Adlington letter' was directly responsible for it being included in the initial 12.

The motion from Cllr Wardlaw, which is seconded by Sutton councillor Chris O'Leary, is expected to be referred to cabinet for debate.

The meeting of the full council takes place on Wednesday, July 15, at 11am at the SKA Observatory, Jodrell Bank.