‘Totally disrespectful!’ Councillors ‘square up’ as Green Belt meeting suspended after ‘Nazi’ insult causes chaos
Councillors in a Greater Manchester local authority “squared up” to each other after a meeting around a green belt became “explosive”.
The Oldham Council meeting was adjourned after members of the public and councillors began hurling abuse at one another, with one calling another a “nazi” and a “dictator”.
The heated debate, which was screened online, was centred around the “controversial” Places for Everyone housing scheme.
The programme involves nine Greater Manchester districts and aims to build 115,000 new homes over the next 15 years.
Councillors complained during the debate that Angela Rayner, the Housing Secretary and Deputy Prime Minister, had not been informed of Oldham’s “revocation” of the scheme.
During the meeting’s break, an argument is believed to have broken out between the deputy of the Oldham Conservatives Lewis Quigg and the Conservative leader Graham Sheldon.
The two men began squaring up to one another and Quigg could be heard saying “I quit this party. You no longer have any say over me”. Other Conservative councillors had to step in to separate them.
As tensions boiled over, Oldham Mayor Zahid Chauhan called for calm to no avail.
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Quigg can also be heard calling Labour councillor Arook Shah, the council leader, a “dictator”.
Independent Councillor Marc Hince claims he was called a Nazi “without any reason or provocation” during the debate.
In a statement, he said: “During last night’s full council meeting… two Conservative members called me a Nazi, without any reason or provocation. Something I find deeply offensive and absolutely uncalled for.
“Naturally, I challenged the individual vociferously. However, I reflected on my actions and apologised unreservedly to all elected members and the chamber as a whole.
“Unfortunately, despite requests from the mayor and their own Group Leader they refused to apologise.”
Police were eventually called to the council building, with Greater Manchester Police confirming that “inquiries remain ongoing” into racially aggravated public order.
Officers took statements whilst the meeting remained adjourned for an hour and 45 minutes, and when it resumed, councillors involved in the “aggressive behaviour” were asked to apologise.
However, the meeting was suspended after both Conservative councillors refused to apologise.
Shah later told the chamber: “Shame on all of us for allowing this behaviour to continue and grow and stand here to proclaim we represent the people of the borough and their best interest when we conduct ourselves like this.”
A Greater Manchester Police spokesman said: “Officers responded to reports of a disturbance from a member of the public at Oldham Civic Centre on West Street at around 5.30pm on Wednesday. Police are currently investigating reports of racially aggravated public order, and inquiries into this remain ongoing.”