Taxi Driver Online

We are never short of stories about councillors metering out their own particular brand of justice to taxi drivers and often as a secondary punishment. I suppose most on TDO won't feel too much remorse for this motley crew?
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UK Newsquest Regional Press - This is Lancashire

May 24, 2007 Thursday

Councillor cleared in "night of shame" probe

Rob Devey

The Bolton News

ONE of the three councillors who have admitted being part of a group accused of being drunk and abusive at a town centre pub has been ruled out of the investigation.

Cllr Tony Connell has been told he is in the clear by Bolton Council leader Cllr Cliff Morris, who has accepted his Labour colleague left The Spinning Mule before the alleged incidents. The move to rule out Cllr Connell came as chairman of Bolton's standards committee, Dr Robert Aston, warned any finding that councillors were involved would be looked upon "with the utmost gravity".

Cllr Connell, who denied being abusive to pub staff after the annual mayor making ceremony on Wednesday last week, said: "I'm pleased. Most people have said "it's just not Tony", it's not in my nature to be that way."

He added that he had left the pub at 8.30pm.

Cllr Morris was today viewing more CCTV footage from the pub and was hoping to conclude his own investigation into what happened tomorrow afternoon. He has vowed to report the incident to the Standards Board for England, and his findings will help determine which councillors are referred to the watchdog.

Cllr Morris, who this week apologised for any offence caused by the incident, has interviewed fellow Labour councillors Nick Peel and Sean Hornby, who also admitted being at the pub. They have denied any wrong-doing and said they had a civilised drink, although Cllr Hornby has admitted some members of the group - but not councillors - may have been "boisterous".

The alleged incident is said to have happened during a five-hour drinking session. It is claimed that one person was so drunk he was sick on the stairs, while another was carried to a taxi.

Staff were allegedly abused when they refused to serve more alcohol and had to ask the group to leave at around 9pm.

There are claims that one member of the group asked bar staff "Do you know who I am?" and that another said "We make the licensing laws, we can bend them."

Dr Aston said: "Some of the allegations made in The Bolton News report are very serious; in particular the implications that members of the group used their position as councillors to attempt to exert pressure on bar staff, and that CCTV coverage of the alleged incident has been handed to the police.

"I regard infringement of the Councillors Code of Conduct with the utmost gravity. Any complaints on this or other occasions will be dealt with impartially, without delay and with vigour." If the Standards Board finds evidence of a breach of the code of conduct it could refer the matter for legal determination to either Mr Aston's standards committee or the Adjudication Panel for England.

The Adjudication Panel has the power to disqualify councillors for up to five years, while local standards committees can suspend councillors for as long as three months.
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Apart from saying 'I'm the OAP of the GMB' is there anything worse those councillors could have said?

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IDFIMH