A committee has narrowly decided to order a replay of a decision not to launch an investigation into a councillor’s "invasion of migrants" social media comment.
The comment, which was posted on Ben Everitt MP's Facebook page, said that it is “time to stop the invasion of migrants and time to send a lot back.”
Leaders of the council’s Labour and Liberal Democrat groups proposed an unprecedented use of the council’s reset button to reject a decision made by a sub-committee on July 7.
After the meeting, the Conservative group said they are looking to overturn Thursday’s decision.
Conservative councillor and ex serviceman Terry Baines (Campbell Park & Old Woughton) has apologised for the comment, made on Facebook, and been stripped of his role as armed forces champion.
“This issue can never be minor or trivial,” said council Labour leader Pete Marland (Wolverton). “The decision brought shame on this council.”
He urged the committee to decide that the decision earlier this month was “unsound.”
The committee was advised it had to decide if the sub committee of councillors Saleena Raja (Cons, Shenley Brook End), Norman Miles (Lab, Wolverton) and Sam Crooks (Lib Dem, Broughton) had made an error in the process.
Cllr Raja said the issues were discussed in detail, in the presence of two lawyers, a trainee solicitor and none of whom suggested a flaw.
“This is about displeasure with the outcome, not the procedure,” she said. “It’s about getting the outcome they desire.”
Cllr Crooks, who has 30 years of experience as a magistrate, said it came down to one missing word in Cllr Baines’s comment, which was made in support of an MP’s statement on the immigration bill.
“He did not type the word ‘illegal’ before migrants,” said Cllr Crooks.
Cllr Crooks, the immediate former mayor, said the committee found the code had been breached.
“But, notwithstanding this, to move to a full hearing to discuss the omission of a single word, seemed disproportionate, especially when the council has so many other pressing problems to resolve at the moment,” he said.
Cllr Crooks added there had been many sanctions against Cllr Baines, and the council did not have any more action that it could take.
But Cllr Norman Miles (Lab, Wolverton), himself a retired magistrate, said the conclusion that racist language is trivial and not going to the next stage, was “almost irrational”.
“Any good lawyer will tell you there is two sides of these things. One is good law and one is common sense.
“Common sense was not in the majority, if I may say so, on that day.”
The committee voted by four votes to three to reject the earlier committee’s decision. Another meeting will now need to hear the issues again.
But even that may not be the end of the matter.
A spokesperson of the Conservative group said their opponents are “making a mockery of the standards process.”
“The two other political parties have clearly colluded and are playing petty party politics for their own advantage.
“We are now looking at ensuring last night’s blatant political decision can be overturned.”
