Councillor’s racism probe outcome due

A MEETING was held behind closed doors at the district council yesterday (Wednesday) to hear the results of an investigation into a Deal councillor’s racist remarks.

The complaint was made to the council’s standards committee following Cllr Bob Frost’s “jungle bunny” comments on a social networking site, which last year prompted a series of Mercury stories.

A council officer told the private hearing that there had been no failure of any breach of standards within the structure of the local government.

But any final decision from the committee members was not known at the time of the Mercury going to press yesterday and Cllr Frost, when invited to offer a comment, declined.

The unsavoury comments were made by the councillor after the riots in August and he later apologised for his words.

He was not expelled from the Conservative Party, a decision condemned by both the Dover branch of the public service union Unison and the Labour Party members of the district council.

Cllr Gordon Cowan, leader of the district council’s Labour group, called the decision not to banish Cllr Frost a disgrace.

Unison wanted council leader Cllr Paul Watkins to reconsider the Conservatives’ decision to extend Cllr Frost’s suspension from the Tory party to expulsion.

Unison’s letter to the council leader stated: “The decision of the Conservative group not to expel Cllr Frost will potentially impact on every member of staff at the district council because Dover District Council is now seen as an organisation that will tolerate racism.”

But Cllr Watkins said: “The union had an opportunity to raise its concerns from early August about this matter. Why wait until the decision has been made?

“Common sense and fair play says the matter should be put to rest.”

■ Cllr Bob Frost represents North Deal ward at last year’s election.