Cabinet member’s response

Conservative councillor Ross McWilliams has said he could ‘respect, if not entirely agree with, the findings’ of a sub-committee which found him to have brought ‘his role and local authority into disrepute’.

It comes as the cabinet member said he was ‘delighted to have been totally exonerated’ in relation to two other complaints which were not upheld – regarding the disclosure of interests or using his position to advantage himself or others.

In a statement on Facebook on Friday, Cllr McWilliams said: “In finding a breach of the code of conduct, the standards committee found that RBWM’s constitution did not prevent me from sitting on the planning committee whilst also holding the role of cabinet member with responsibility for affordable housing.

“They also found that it would be expected that I would be likely to publicly express general support for the provision of affordable housing within the borough.

“Indeed, I argued that it seemed odd to be found to have brought the council into disrepute despite acting in accordance with the law and the council’s policy.

“The standards committee made the very fair point that councillors are ‘subject to greater scrutiny than that of ordinary members of the public’ and I have always endeavoured to hold myself to the highest possible standards.

“This is probably why this has all been so upsetting, as my political opponents have sought to tarnish my reputation for political gain, which – for a local lad trying to do his best for his home – is all a bit depressing.

“It was because of these high standards that I resigned from the planning committee. At the time, I said I ‘deeply regret[ted] any resident losing faith in the planning process, especially if my actions had anything to do with that’.

“I stand by those statements and can respect – if not entirely agree with – the findings of the standards committee.”

The Cox Green councillor added: “As a fierce proponent of improving the provision of mental health support and encouraging positivity and kindness in our local area, I have been dismayed at the horrendous depths political opponents have been willing to descend to.

“The social media attacks I have been subject to seemed at times to be deliberately encouraged by some opposition councillors and the leaking of the confidential reports to the newspapers was a new low for political discourse in our borough.”