The government is planning to take legal action against Medway Council over its residents’ magazine.

Back in August, Medway Council was warned about the publication rate of Medway Matters and given 10 days to state how it intends to proceed.

A letter sent to leader Cllr Rodney Chambers raised concerns that the council might not be complying with the Publicity Code, as it publishes its newssheet every two months, rather than every three months.

The letter reminded Cllr Chambers that council newsletters should not be issued too frequently “to ensure that in each locality the independent local media does not face unfair competition.”

Legal action could be taken in “a matter of weeks”, the government said, if the council, along with 10 others across the country, fails to stop or justify actions considered not to be in compliance with the code.

Local Government Minister Kris Hopkins said: “Frequent town hall freesheets are not only a waste of taxpayers’ money but they undermine the free press. Localism needs robust and independent scrutiny by the press and public.

“Councillors and political parties are free to campaign and put out political literature but they should not do so using taxpayers’ money.

“This is the eleventh hour for 11 councils who we consider are clearly flouting the Publicity Code. They have all now been given written notice that we are prepared to take further action, should it be necessary, against any council that undermines local democracy – whatever the political colour.”

Medway Matters is distributed to 115,000 households and costs £50,000 to produce.

Medway Council has previously said it was conducting a “full and extensive review”, adding “part of this is considering our contractual arrangements for the publication.

"We plan to complete this review by the end of this calendar year, and we would be very happy to share the outcomes of that with you.”

Medway Council now has a fortnight to show why a legal direction, the Secretary of State may choose to issue, is not necessary. Any council that does not follow any subsequent legal direction could end up facing a court order requiring compliance.