The council has again been accused of ‘bullying behaviour’ during a councillor’s announcement that they will not stand for re-election. 

The representative for Wildridings & Central ward, Cllr Thomas Parker, claimed that “unnecessary behaviour and toxicity” from a core of members “still plagues the council”. 

“I have had comments over the past 3.5 years where I have experienced abuse from fellow councillors. I have witnessed for myself bullying behaviour on public committees towards other members in the opposition,” he said. 

Cllr Parker made the comments during a written announcement declaring he will not be seeking re-election in 2023 for either borough or the town council. 

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It is the second public accusation of bullying that has been made against the council’s leadership this year.  

In an interview with The News in January, former Old Bracknell representative Malcolm Tullett revealed his reasons behind stepping down after two years of alleged bullying from colleagues behind the scenes. 

Mr Tullett described the council as “rotten to the core” and called on other councillors to “stick their heads above the parapet” and make changes. 

His comments come after a 2021 survey found that 93 per cent of current councillors claimed they had witnessed bullying. 

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Cllr Parker has said residents would be “furious” if they saw how their representatives were behaving but concluded that these problems “will persist” until the “old guard […] are gone]”. 

The council’s executive director of delivery Kevin Gibbs rebuked the claims, suggesting “robust debate” happens within and between political parties and disagreements are an “inevitable consequence” – a repeat of the response issued by Chief Executive Timothy Wheadon in the wake of Mr Tullett’s accusations. 

Mr Gibbs went on to say that the previous survey found that bullying and bad behaviour at the council was “rare”, but any instances were “unacceptable” and there are “robust processes” in place when they occur.  

“In the time since the last survey, we have put additional measures in place to ensure we meet the highest possible standards of conduct. 

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“In the period between April 1, 2021, and March 31, 2022, the monitoring officer received no complaints alleging breaches of Codes of Conduct for members. However, we will never be complacent and we continue to work with councillors on ensuring high standards of conduct are maintained.,” Mr Gibbs added. 

Cllr Parker announced that he will serve the rest of his term as a Liberal Democrat representative for the ward but “will leave the world of local politics and the party” next year. 

“It was the honour of my life to be elected in May 2019 […] I never wanted politics to become a career, I had no intentions of ever standing to be a Member of Parliament or even to lead my local party. I wanted to do my part as a citizen of this borough, the place that I had grown up, and help people,” he added.