Central Bedfordshire councillor for Dunstable apologises over Facebook post

A second apology on social media in four months has been made by Independent Dunstable East Central Bedfordshire councillor John Gurney over separate articles he posted on Facebook.

He unveiled Central Bedfordshire Council’s new garden waste collection policies on the Dunstable Independents Facebook page, ahead of any official announcement.

That prompted a complaint to CBC’s chief executive Marcel Coiffait from 11 Conservative CBC councillors upset that the information was leaked in advance.

The post has subsequently been withdrawn and replaced by CBC’s official plans, released through its social media channels.

Councillor Gurney wrote: “I made a mistake on Friday by writing and publishing an article on the Dunstable Independents Facebook page and sharing it to groups in Dunstable.

“After reflecting upon the text, I realised the mistake I’d made in my article and deleted within hours.

“I didn’t wish to call into question the reputation or integrity of any councillor or council officer in Dunstable Town Council or CBC. I apologise to them if they felt I’d done this deliberately, as that wasn’t my intention.

“I apologised to the Dunstable town clerk and chief executive on Friday. I shall try not to create such hastily composed articles in future and will instead focus on serving the community.”

The previous apology led to Central Bedfordshire councillors being given a second dressing down in three years over standards of behaviour.

Council leader and Independent Potton councillor Adam Zerny warned members about their conduct in a collective reprimand at a full council meeting in November.

“It’s essential we as councillors behave with dignity, respect and tact to each other, to members of the public and to officers,” he explained.

That followed a post by councillor Gurney on an article published in a national newspaper about Luton Road in Dunstable, and its continued use by HGVs to access the Woodside industrial estate from the M1.

An initial attempt to say sorry by email backfired and prompted a second fuller apology addressed to Mr Coiffait, CBC’s director of place and communities Lorna Carver, councillor Zerny, and to all other CBC councillors and officers.

It read: “I’m writing to apologise for my recent behaviour and the way in which I wrote to all of you earlier this week.

“I now realise the way I went about doing this was wrong. I accept I should have contacted Marcel first directly, and asked to discuss my concerns with him, perhaps asking Adam, as leader of the Independent group, to attend any meeting as a witness.

“I’m fully retracting and apologise for all the statements I’ve made in my emails and Facebook posts, all of which will be deleted from the pages to which I posted and shared them.

“I sincerely apologise to the officers and anyone who feels personally hurt and upset by anything I said, as it was never my intention to upset anyone.

“Although I mentioned one officer’s name, Lorna Carver, throughout my report, there was never any intent on my part to make a personal attack of any kind.”