Paedophile former mayor quits council
AWELSH councillor and former town mayor who was convicted of raping and abusing two young girls has resigned.
David Boswell resigned from his post as county councillor in Pembrokeshire and as Pembroke town councillor.
The chief executive of Pembrokeshire Council has confirmed he received a letter of resignation from Boswell on August 1.
It comes after it was revealed last month that Boswell would still be paid for three months, despite being in prison.
A spokesman for the council said yesterday: “The council has, throughout the past year, carried out extensive efforts with its partner agencies – including the town council – to put safeguarding first and to ensure that Mr Boswell did not carry out ward work, attend council events or attend meetings which would place him in contact with, or make any key decisions in relation to, children.
“Our thoughts go out to the victims and families affected and we thank them for their immense courage in bringing this matter forward.”
Boswell was sentenced to 18 years in prison on Friday, July 13.
The 58-year-old county councillor for Pembroke St Mary North and former mayor of Pembroke has entered a notice of appeal against his conviction.
This means that Pembrokeshire County Council had to carry on paying Boswell’s salary heard.
Boswell earns £13,600 for his role as councillor, was entitled to receive £3,400 over the next three months, and PCC could not declare a vacancy until the appeal is decided.
A spokesman for PCC said at the time: “Unless the councillor resigns from his position, the council can only disqualify a member if, since election, he has been convicted of an offence and has been sentenced to imprisonment for a period of not less than three months.
“Conviction is deemed to occur on expiry of the period allowed for making an appeal or application with respect to the conviction, or the date on which such appeal is finally disposed of.”
It was confirmed that Councillor Boswell submitted a notice of appeal against all convictions and sentence on July 16.
The NSPCC have called for the current law to be changed.
A spokesman said: “It is wrong that someone convicted of sexual crimes against children can continue to serve as an elected official for any period of time and we support a change to the law to ensure situations like this are not repeated.” while the appeal is