Islington News: Catherine West | Richard Bunting | Terry Stacy | Ursula Wolley | Gay Slur

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Islington Tribune - by ROISIN GADELRAB
Published: 15 August 2008

‘Gay slur’ councillor supported

THE Tories have leapt to the defence of Labour leader Catherine West after she was accused of making fun of a gay Lib Dem councillor at a meeting.
Conservative deputy chairman Richard Bunting said the Lib Dems were being “oversensitive” after they reported Councillor West to the standards committee over her allegedly offensive comment.
Cllr West was accused of offending deputy leader Terry Stacy during a discussion on green spaces and public toilets. Education chief Ursula Wolley then made a complaint to the standards committee.
The unlikely alliance between Labour and the Tories, who were at last month’s executive meeting when Cllr West is alleged to have made the comment, say her words were entirely misinterpreted. Mr Bunting wants the council to drop the costly investigation, which has been under way since the standards committee met on July 31.
He said: “We listened to Cllr West legitimately question member Cllr Stacy on the categorisation of public toilets as green space in Islington. I was subsequently shocked to hear reports last week that Cllr West has been hauled in front of the borough’s standards committee.”
He added: “Why is the council spending taxpayers’ money and the time of council officials investigating this ‘offence’ rather than focusing resources on the residents the Lib Dems are supposed to be serving?”

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