Two Conservative councillors, Barry Phelps and Mark Daley, have so far been forced to resign over the dissemination of material featuring young boys in suggestive poses: now a third has been the subject of a successful prosecution for possession of child porn.
It is an extraordinary record for a council boasting it has a superior child protection regime in place.
The Council Leader, Merrick Cockell, has many questions to answer. But the vital one is one is why he ever allowed Andrew Lamont to continue serving as a councillor knowing of the gravity of the charges hanging over him. It is one that Derek Myers, the Chief Executive also needs to reflect upon.
Were the Dame a parent at St. Anne’s Nursery School & Children’s Centre, she would be addressing her concerns directly to Cllr Cockell.
If Cockell is not able to persuade parents and residents that he acted correctly we should be demanding he step aside until a full and independent investigation either exonerated him or otherwise...but he won't do that: he loves his £70k a year too much.
The Dame has removed the one of many disgusting images ex Mayor Phelps circulated on the grounds that it was too shocking. This was at the request of a shocked reader.
What a corrupt council!
Dear Dame, I appreciate what you are trying to do, but please take the photo down.
ReplyDeleteGiven the circumstances under which it was viewed and circulated, it is deeply unpleasant and upsetting.
Dame Hornet, thank you for your sensitivity in taking the photo down. As a parent I found it really upsetting.
ReplyDeleteIf this was supposedly 'innocent', in this context I genuinely can't imagine what kind of thing Lamont has been done for.
Truly horrific.
This won't be the last Cockell hears of this, it will haunt him for the rest of his days. He must 'clean house' now, and step aside until this is cleared up.
ReplyDeleteAnd Donaldson, who gave Lamont a character reference, should also be asked to resign.
In truth this is just another outrage which has tarnished the good reputation of the Conservative party. Cockell should resign over this after all he is ultimately responsible. It is not as if the council is run on an open and democratic basis; the Leader selects who he wants as a council candidate and points the ward committee in the direction he feels fit. Sir Merrick Cockell is a terrible example of the democratic process; aspiring honest and well meaning politicians beware. An absolute disgrace.
ReplyDeleteEverything these Councillors have done flies in the face of protecting vulnerable, innocent children who have an absolute right to our protection.
ReplyDeleteIn the 'real world' these people would have been suspended or sacked. They would not have been given access to information about how schools or vulnerable groups are run.
They were supposedly the upholders of the law, pillars of our society and allowed to remain in positions of power by Cockell and his mob despite him knowing what they were accused of.
Would he have had them anywhere near his own children? I doubt it.
Instead he did nothing which is criminal.
I do not agree with the judge in Lamonts case, he should have gone to prison because of the category of what he downloaded would have been so abhorrent. Who has been protecting the children in the images he downloaded? Probably no one and we will never know if they have been cared for since.
These Crimes because that's what they are are unforgivable because they damage the innocent who will never have the luxury of feeling safe again, they will be damaged for the rest of their lives.
Cockell and his gang should be made accountable by his colleagues, this should be the final straw for the
Tories to sort themselves out.
We (the residents) could help him along with a "No Confidence" campaign
ReplyDeleteMob:07799647160
Well David Le Brocquy you are always saying 'we could blabla' so why don't you kick off?
ReplyDeleteYou might be surprised at the support you get.
Why has the press not picked up on this? They all read the Hornets Nest. If it was an East London council I am sure this would be plastered across the front pages. Disgusting and one of the reasons I no longer buy any newspapers.
ReplyDelete10.23 its not what you know its who you know, this is why the press have been completely useless in investigating and publishing what has been brought to light by the Dame.
ReplyDeleteIf the press wanted to do something they could. Instead they want to perpetuate the illusion that Kensington and Chelsea is rich, well managed bubble. But residents who actually 'live' here, not fly in for the summer or the odd weekend know that not far beneath the surface is a 'club' of nasty people who manage this borough, cream it for their own ends, keep the 'poor' in their place in the north by continually rebuilding their communities, and allow Lamont and the other creeps to not only avoid justice (because thats what happened) but continue to pay them to represent the residents, and allow them to access information they have no right to.
But residents are starting to wake up to whats been done in their name and THEY are not happy.
13.08
ReplyDeleteHow has Lamont avoided justice? He was tried and convicted?
He should have gone to prison.
ReplyDelete