‘Black cloud’ over SMDC as Tory Party ‘expels’ councillor

Calls for Gail Lockett to resign from authority

DISTRICT councillors have called for a more in-depth investigation after one of their number was expelled from the Conservative Party group.

Councillor Gail Lockett has been removed from the Staffordshire Moorland District Council group with immediate effect following a meeting last week. But opposition leaders also want her to resign from the council, as well as saying there are ‘still questions to be answered.’

A statement to the Post & Times said: “The leader of the council, Councillor Sybil Ralphs, recently convened an extraordinary meeting of members of the Conservative Group, where the decision was made to permanently remove Councillor Gail Locket as a member of the Conservative Group, with immediate effect.”

The removal of Mrs Lockett comes days after Staffordshire Moorlands District Council’s Standards Board found her guilty of breaching the authority’s code of conduct by ‘lying’ about her council tax payments.

Labour leader Chris Wood and Moorlands Democratic Alliance leader Linda Malyon both called for Councillor Lockett to resign in the wake of her expulsion.

Councillor Malyon said: “There are still questions to be answered. There should have been a more in depth investigation into what has happened.

“There is a black cloud over the district council and it is not fair on other councillors.”

The district council’s standards board committee recommended that the maximum sanctions that could be imposed should apply to Councillor Lockett, including to censure or reprimand the member, to publish its findings in respect of the member’s conduct, to report its findings to council and to recommend that she be removed from all council committees.

Prior to the standard board meeting an independent inquiry by Simon Goacher, of law firm Weightmans had concluded that Mrs Lockett failed to comply with the code of conduct on social media.

Councillor Wood said: “Councillor Locket should now resign. There is overwhelming evidence against her on film. This has brought the council into disrepute and has done irreparable damage. It also tars good councillors with the same brush.

“There are still a lot of unanswered questions in this case and we need to know where we go from here. Councillors who break the code of conduct have to take the consequences.

“In the last three years four Conservative councillors have broken the code of conduct.

“It is totally unacceptable.” In March, last year the Post & Times revealed that under a confidential item the district council’s ruling cabinet agreed to write off money owed on Flat 2 Spout Hall, St Edward Street, Leek, for the period between 2010 and 2017.

The flat has been the home of Tory district councillor Gail Lockett for 20 years. The debt is shown in the name of James Lockett, who was made bankrupt in June 2017 following a petition by the trustees of Rudyard Sailability.

The council wrote off the debt in November 2017 of £7,192.99 as it was considered to be irrecoverable.

Councillor Malyon added: “The investigation was not deep enough. How can the council write off the money when Councillor Lockett has stated that she has always lived in Flat 2 and why was the write off of the debt not brought before the full council for scrutiny. It is not acceptable.”

When contacted by the Post & Times, Mrs Lockett said she had no comment to make on the matter, but last month, she hit back at the report.

She said: “I have been tried and found guilty with headlines defaming my character on the opinion of one person on his balance of opinion and no one else.”

Councillor Lockett said in an interview that she always paid her council tax on time and was never in arrears.

Mr Goacher said: “The key comment that she always paid her council tax on time and was never in arrears were untrue as on November 11, 2015 a liability order was obtained. In August 2017 a reminder was issued after failing to pay this month.

Mrs Lockett added: “Mr Goacher decided that in my interview I must have lied. I can assure the panel that was never my intention as I always paid on receipt of my council tax bill.”