A SENIOR church spokesman has agreed to attend a public meeting to discuss concerns about where the new Bishop of Bath and Wells will live, following a meeting with Burnham MP Tessa Munt.

Church commissioners’ decided to move the Bishop of Bath & Wells out of a flat in the Bishop’s Palace to a house outside the City, reportedly at a cost of more than £700,000.

Concerned residents across the diocese contacted Ms Munt who met Sir Tony Tony Baldry MP, the Church Commissioners’ spokesman in Parliament, to tell him she had filed a formal Parliamentary Question requesting the reasons for the decision.

She told him she was very disappointed to discover that there had been no consultation about this move, which would alter radically the relationship between the Bishop and local people.

Sir Tony agreed to meet constituents and answer their questions in a public meeting in Wells, the date for which will be advised. She said: “I met with Sir Tony to air local people’s concerns. I told him that Bishops of Bath and Wells have lived in the palace for some 800 years, and that this unprecedented change has sent shock waves through the community, regardless of where people worship.”

“We have been blessed with effective and engaging Bishops for as long as I can remember, and the Palace provides a unique, atmospheric and contemplative environment for those involved in its life, including the many visitors.”