A union leader has predicted that a Cambridgeshire council would "quietly dump" a proposed "kiss and tell personnel" policy. Fenland District Council, based in March, is considering introducing a scheme under which "intimate behaviour during work time" could be classed as gross misconduct and lead to disciplinary action.

Workers would have to declare any "close personal relationship" with a colleague to their manager "in writing" and inform the personnel department so that details could be logged in personal files. "I think that this particular piece of nonsense must have come out of a Christmas cracker," said John Toomey, Unison's regional organiser.

"There are already enough policies at Fenland council's disposal, and at the disposal of other local authorities, to deal with inappropriate behaviour at work."He added: "I suspect that when Fenland's councillors sit down to discuss this, with the world's media watching, they will decide to quietly dump it in the nearest fen."

A TUC official has described the "Draft People Policy: Relationships at Work" plan, drawn up by Sam Anthony, the council's head of human resources and organisational development, as "an Orwellian dictat" which would generate resentment among staff. Campaign organisation Big Brother Watch said the council should reject the idea and "let common sense prevail".