Reform UK’s proposal to strengthen freedom of expression protections in the code of conduct for elected members was approved by Durham County Council on Wednesday, 22 October following a passionate debate from councillors.
The move was spearheaded by the council’s deputy leader Darren Grimes, who said more than £11,000 of taxpayers’ cash had been spent on administering “vexatious” council complaints, mostly against him, as of mid-September.
But opposition councillors warned it could lead to members using “offensive, shocking, or provocative language”.
Explaining his decision for the changes, he told a full council meeting: “I want to unchain the monitoring officer and her legal and democratic services to be able to get on with the job of delivering for this council. I don’t want them to be going through my social media posts like my biggest fan the world has ever known.
“I want the real business of governance for the people of County Durham to be delivered, and actually start to get done in a serious way. You can’t do that if you are going through reams and reams of complaints that amount to absolutely nothing other than a disagreement based on political belief.”
There were 172 complaints about councillors in the four months since May 1’s council election, with 34 leading to investigations – 21 of those against deputy leader Darren Grimes. Complaints included allegations of bringing the council into disrepute, failing to treat people with respect and not representing people of a differing view.
Yet, the deputy leader previously vowed not to be “silenced” despite the “scandal of persecution” against him.
Cllr Grimes added: “If you think my opinions are offensive, I would ask you to go out there to your Stanleys, your Ferryhills, wherever else and actually speak to ordinary people. I think you will find that Darren Grimes is a lily-livered liberal compared to many of our residents. They would say I’m wet, believe it or not.
“We need to get back to a sensible, democratic debate, where each of us recognises that we are accountable to our voters at the ballot box. What we’ve seen since May is the weaponisation of the standards process.”
Council leaders hoped to replicate a move by the London Borough of Bromley last year, which amended its code of conduct to include “the right to freedom of speech under the law is the basis of democracy and will be upheld at all times and there is no right to be offended by any lawful expression.”
But opposition councillors refuted Reform’s claims and warned it could increase the number of complaints to the council.
“Just because we will have the freedom to use offensive, shocking, or provocative language doesn’t mean that we should,” said Cllr Chris Lines, Independent member for Sedgefield.
He added: “Cloaked in a disguise that we can all see through, this amendment represents a race to the bottom of the ninth circle of political hell.
“It will unleash exactly the kind of discourse that chips away at civility in public life, which leads to more and more violent rhetoric, which in turn enables and even encourages real violence, resulting in tragedies such as those we have seen all too frequently in this country and abroad.
“This amendment sends a signal that there is something rotten in the state of County Durham, and it makes me very uneasy.”
Meanwhile, Labour’s Rob Crute said the revised rules “expose the risk of bringing this council into disrepute”.
Liberal Democrat councillor Mark Wilkes added: “The amendment grants a licence to engage in offensive behaviour, making it harder for the monitoring officer to enforce restraints. The existing code, requiring responsible behaviour, better serves the human rights interest of maintaining public order and ensuring the council functions effectively.
“False or recklessly inaccurate statements are not political opinion but an abuse of position. The changes are overbroad, failing to explicitly affirm the council’s duty to sanction councillors for abuse that constitutes harassment or bullying.”
Last week, Durham County Council approved changes to its code of conduct complaints procedure. Reform UK said the new measures will make the council’s decisions more transparent to the public.
However, the latest changes were also backed by Cllr Pete Molloy, Independent member for Spennymoor, who was found to have breached the authority’s code of conduct in 2023. Cllr Molloy was referred to a standards committee after he argued a social media post was from his personal Facebook page and not in his capacity as a county or town councillor.
He said: “If this is going to prevent a member from falling foul of the members’ code of conduct when they’re not acting in their capacity as a councillor, I’ll support it.”
The new freedom of expression amendment to the council’s code of conduct was approved by 63 votes to 28, with one abstention.
