New Peterborough council leader to be elected 12th September
That's after the resignation of former leader Dennis Jones
A date has been set for a meeting of all Peterborough councillors who will decide on a new city council leader.
The extraordinary full council meeting was called following the resignation of former leader Dennis Jones on September 4.
Councillor Jones was also suspended from the Labour Party pending an immediate investigation after independent city councillor Daisy Blakemore-Creedon publicly shared a screenshot of text messages from Cllr Jones which appeared to show him call Rotherham grooming gang victims “poor white trash”.
The social media post from Cllr Blakemore-Creedon showing a screenshot of the interaction generated significant engagement online, with considerable backlash aimed at Cllr Jones.
Local and national politicians, including Peterborough MP Andrew Pakes and North West Cambridgeshire MP Sam Carling, also condemned the language used by the former leader.
Cllr Jones has since apologised and admitted his message was “clearly inappropriate”. He will now serve as an independent councillor.
All 60 Peterborough city councillors will now meet on Friday, September 12 at Sand Martin House to elect a new leader of the council and executive.
There are now 15 members of the Labour Party on the city council (14 members of Labour and Cooperative Party and one Labour Party), 11 members of the Conservative Party, 11 members of Peterborough First, 10 independents, eight Liberal Democrats, and five members of the Green Party.
A Peterborough City Council spokesperson said a formal complaint had been received by the council in relation to the comments made by Cllr Jones and that the authority was “considering its contents”.
The Labour Party said it “expects the highest standards” from members and confirmed that an investigation was ongoing.
Labour MPs Mr Pakes and Mr Carling said in a joint statement: “It is right that the Labour Party has moved swiftly to suspend Cllr Jones and investigate this inappropriate and unacceptable language.
“It’s also right that Cllr Jones has resigned as leader of the council. We will continue to press for action on the national scandal of abuse and for speedier action by relevant authorities to bring perpetrators to justice and give victims the support and dignity they deserve.”