Kentish Gazette Canterbury & District
‘We’re seeing vile abuse - it must stop’
“We are being accosted on the street, accused of corruption and harassed online - it must stop.”
That is the message from politicians in the Canterbury district, who say they are the subjects of “appalling abuse” online and in person on a regular basis. One councillor has had to tell his concerned child vitriol “comes with the job” - while another claims he and colleagues have been the victims of a “peculiar kind of stalking”. Chris Cornell, who represents Whitstable’s Gorrell ward, believes much of the resentment shown towards politicians stems from a belief they “are constantly on the take”.
“I did a street stall a couple of weeks ago, and my daughter was in the car, and a gentleman was berating me quite heavily in the street,” the Labour councillor recalled.
“I came into the car and she went ‘daddy, that man was very angry at you, wasn’t he - why was he so angry at you, have you ever met him before?’ and I went ‘no, but it kind of comes with the job.’”
In another incident, Cllr Cor
nell says after posting a campaign leaflet through a front door, a resident left the house, followed him down the road and ripped it up in front of him. Conservative Rachel Carnac believes the frequency of the abuse colleagues face “undermines the role of a councillor”. The Reculver Tory believes allegations of underhandedness or corruption are becoming increasingly normal. Research shows 70% of councillors
across the UK have experienced abuse and intimidation over the last 12 months. “Anyone should feel safe to represent their community,” Cllr Carnac argued.
“But the increasing level of abuse and intimidation aimed at local politicians is becoming a barrier to us representing the communities we serve.
“It is also deterring individuals from standing for election and is undermining local democracy.”
Cllr Cornell says his party has taken a number of precautions to keep themselves safe in the wake of the Jo Cox tragedy. These include attending surgeries in pairs - rather than alone - and being with colleagues while door-knocking. “I think the general idea is councillors are all in it for massive amounts of money, big brown envelopes from developers,” Cllr Cornell added. “They seem to assume we are
constantly on the take, rather than people doing their best with limited resources.” Bridge Parish Council chairman Alan Atkinson says similar kinds of abuse are angled towards him and representatives at his level of government. He believes parish councillors are in an especially difficult position, as they face bumping into animated residents on visits to their locals, shops and on walks. “I can’t avoid seeing them,” he said.
“As parish chair I think I get £300 a year before tax, and it doesn’t cover travel to attend meetings on behalf of the village - but there’s a perception we’re doing it because we’re making money out of it.” Cllr Atkinson says a resident once reported almost half of the parish council to the monitoring officer - the person who deals with maladministration or allegations of wrongdoing by councillors - within a year. None of the complaints made were upheld.
“We had one year where an individual sent in more than 200 Freedom of Information requests,” he continued. “The requests were about everything and anything - who we’ve talked to, what we talked about.
“It’s like a peculiar kind of stalking.”
This comes after councillors from across the political spectrum in the Canterbury district voted to sign up to the Local Government Association’s “Debate Not Hate” campaign last month. The drive is designed to stamp out abuse and intimidation of local politicians by urging the government and police to produce and implement an action plan that addresses the scourge.