Councillor resigns after social distance ‘lapse’ on Facebook

A CAERPHILLY councillor has quit his post after pictures on social media appeared to show him ignoring social distancing rules.

Labour councillor Carl Cuss, who represents Twyn Carno in Caerphilly county, had previously urged residents to adhere to the new strict measures as the county went into a local lockdown.

But he has now resigned after sharing photos on Facebook, taken last month, of himself with friends at a Cardiff restaurant and on a boat in the Czech Republic.

The pictures have since been deleted but Mr Cuss has apologised for a “lapse of judgement” in the midst of an ongoing global pandemic.

Council leader Philippa Marsden said Mr Cuss, who was cabinet member for social care, has chosen the “right thing to do.”

The two Facebook posts from August show Mr Cuss with a friend in a Cardiff restaurant and another on a boat in the Czech Republic with three friends. He stood down the day after Caerphilly county was put in lockdown after a spike in coronavirus cases.

Mr Cuss said: “I have notified the leader of council of my intention to resign from the cabinet with immediate effect.

“I would like to take this opportunity to apologise for this lapse of judgement and accept that my actions were regrettable during an ongoing global pandemic.

“The council needs to have a complete focus on tackling coronavirus within the community and I recognise that this matter could have become an unnecessary distraction at such a critical time.”