Budget meeting storm in chamber as meeting excludes the elected mayor Linda Arkley from the meeting

Budget meeting storm in chamber as meeting excludes the elected mayor Linda Arkley from the meeting

At tonight's budget meeting held Wednesday 27 February.

Opposition Councillors were challenging the Mayor and her Cabinet on her budget proposals, through questions and proposals for her to reconsider before the final meeting on 5th March, there was a political storm.

A councillor was seeking information on workers’ rights and the safeguarding of external funding, but before the question could be fully presented, the elected mayor jumped to her feet and started bullying and harassing the questioner and making unnecessary remarks.

The mayor continued despite the chair of the council asking her to sit down, which she refused so the chair of council (Frank Lott), suspended the council meeting, to achieve some order. When the council re-convened the labour group requested that the mayor make an apology to the whole council, which she refused to do so and then continued berating the labour member. The labour group then moved a procedural motion to exclude the mayor from the meeting, then the whole of the Tory group left the meeting, leaving labour and liberals to continue the business, and both objections went forward unopposed.