The Labour leader of Brighton and Hove City Council has hit back after a long-serving Green councillor complained about poor behaviour at meetings.
Councillor Bella Sankey spoke out after meeting papers published this week included a formal letter from Green councillor Sue Shanks to the council’s interim chief executive Will Tuckley.
Councillor Shanks called for a review into the handling of complaints about behaviour by members of the council and cited “shouting, finger pointing and barracking”.
One of the incidents she referenced was when Labour councillor Amanda Grimshaw called Conservative councillor Anne Meadows a “disgusting, disgraceful woman” during an exchange which can be seen in the video above.
The letter is due to be considered next week at a meeting of the council’s Audit and Standards Committee.
Councillor Sankey said: “Of course we must have respectful dialogue but I’m genuinely incredulous at this letter from Green councillor, Sue Shanks.
“At the last full council meeting she took a photo of me arranging childcare for my children and put it on Twitter accusing me of not paying attention.
“She since deleted the tweet – presumably because she recognised it was not an appropriate way to treat a woman in public life.
“If Councillor Shanks wants to improve respectful dialogue, I suggest she audit her own party.
“Green activists and former Green Brighton and Hove councillors troll and harass me on social media, including with personal abuse.
“I’m also baffled by the timing of this letter as only last week the Green group leader, Steve Davis, publicly shared a hysterical comparison between the Labour Party and the National Front.”
“For context, the specific example Councillor Shanks refers to in her letter, of a member calling another member a ‘disgusting woman’ at (a meeting of the) full council, was in response to Conservative Councillor Anne Meadows dismissing the Labour notice of motion on prioritising domestic abuse victims in housing allocation policy and minimising modern-day domestic violence.
“Councillor Amanda Grimshaw, who was responding for Labour, has spoken openly about her personal experience of fleeing domestic abuse.
“Her response to Councillor Meadows trying to shut down the Labour notice of motion was therefore in that context and reflects the distressing impact Councillor Meadows’s comments had.”
Councillor Meadows herself said that she had found that there was little point in making complaints because they were often just dismissed.
She said: “The one thing I notice is that the behaviour of Labour councillors is increasingly bordering on abuse. It will only get worse and it will be a big problem for any other group on the council.
“I am thinking of doing YouTube videos to show the contempt and arrogance Labour councillors show anyone with a different viewpoint to them.”
She said that instead of having a debate with respect for others’ opinions, “it is becoming a free-for-all.”
If this was shown to the public, it could bring home a “lack of integrity”, she said. The behaviour “would bring the council into disrepute”.
Councillor Meadows added that, earlier this week, members of the public brought their concerns about proposed school closures to the council’s Children, Families and Schools Committee.
But some of them were shown contempt, she said, adding: “I felt it was disgusting.”
Surly greens and arrogant labour at their finest.
What a total mess. The behaviour of all groups is appalling and it sounds like no-one is innocent. We pay dearly for these folks to run our city and we expect better behaviour from all of them.
Is this the same Council Leader who repeatedly yelled ‘baseless smears!’ at a member of the public asking a perfectly reasonable question about child safeguarding in schools at October’s full Council Meeting instead of answering the question? As the cherry on top of this extraordinary display of democracy and civility in action, the member of the public was then forcibly removed from the council chamber before she could finish. Witnesses said they’d never seen anything like it before and it was all taped.
The same council leader who sent an ungracious and drunken Tweet to Caroline Lucas and refused to apologise.
I speak for myself and many parents of St Peter’s & st Bart’s who have made formal complaints about specific Labour Party councillors from this meeting. Shameful and incompetent
Children’s family & schools comittee. I have over 16 points where people were rude to either families affected or other councillors.
Absolutely. There are quite a few complaints submitted. Awful behaviour – if our children in school behaved like that, they would be in trouble!
Bella is happy to speak up about this but not her party’s clear breach of government policy regarding St Peter’s proposal – or the aggressive tone parents have witnessed by Labour councillors? I think they need to really look closer to home before participating in party politics games. This council is a disgrace.
What a disgrace Amanda Grimshaw is. She ran from Moulsecoomb because the residents realised she was no good in the ward and were not going to vote for her again. I feel really sorry for Hangleton residents as she is no where to be seen in the ward. I wonder where she will run to next election as the residents find out she is useless. She is only in it for herself and the money.
‘The money”. Labour councillors earn a pittance, lucky if they’re taking home 10 grand a year. Plus she moved wards due to moving address. It’s fine to have opinions, but not when they’re baseless and incorrect
Business as usual, plebs in charge,,,,, AKA, nothing works and no-one cares and when it does work no-one knows why, merry fookin England
Wow, Greens complaining about behaviour, short memory, the laughing cyclist and the deputy leader displaying a string of foul language at the last elections after losing her seat springs to mind.
I was totally unimpressed and disappointed with the Labour Councillor and leader of the Tourism.Committee who turned up to an AGM of 200 local residents and beach hut owners in order.to answer our questions about the disgraceful stealth tax Labour are introducing on beach hut sales.
I’ve been a.professional.and..a.former Whitehall civil servant. Never before had I witnessed a publicly elected official and committe blunder, bluff, so obviously unprepared and unbriefed, unable to answer simple questions, and increasingly rude and defensive to the people to whom he is accountable….the local council tax.payer!
Ive been a life long Labour supporter but am already frankly disappointed by this Labour council. The Council is on the brink of bankruptcy and I have.little faith they will pull back from it.