Following ITV News' undercover investigation into Reform UK and the broadcast on ITV News at Ten on Thursday, Councillor Ade Adeyemo, Leader of the Liberal Democrat Group on Solihull Council, has called for Councillors Alan Feeney, Chris Whelan and Jamie Campbell to do the honourable thing and resign or be sacked from their council seats
ITV Exposure's secretly recorded footage, published on Thursday, shows all three Reform UK councillors in conversation during the May election campaign. In the broadcast, Cllr Alan Feeney was seen making racist remarks about Asian people and Muslims. Cllrs Campbell, Whelan and Feeney also joked about burying pork products to stop a mosque being built in Castle Bromwich.
Councillor Ade Adeyemo said:
"What ITV has uncovered is shocking and sickening. Calling Muslims 'parasites', mocking the idea of a mosque in our borough and talking about women in this way is not 'personal reasons', it is racism, it is Islamophobia, it is misogyny, pure and simple, and it has no place in public life.
"Solihull has always been a great place to live, where people of all backgrounds and faiths live side by side in peace. Our residents, including the Muslim, Asian and Black communities these councillors have demeaned, deserve representatives who respect them. These three men were elected to serve all of Solihull, and they have betrayed that trust.
All three Reform UK councillors also made sexist and sexually aggressive remarks about female candidates. ITV says the three councillors have yet to respond to its findings.
Cllr Feeney and Cllr Whelan have since resigned from the Reform UK group, citing "personal reasons" and "personal and health grounds" respectively. Both remain councillors. Cllr Feeney also sits on Birmingham City Council as a councillor for Shard End. Cllr Campbell has not resigned from Reform UK and, according to Solihull Council's website, is now the group's Deputy Leader.
Cllr Adeyemo added:
"Once again, I am dismayed but not surprised at Solihull Reform’s disgraceful response to blatant racism and misogyny. Their statement on Wednesday that Alan Feeney and Chris Whelan’s resignations from the Solihull Reform Group were ‘mutually agreed on personal grounds – we thank them for their contributions”, beggars belief. They should have been summarily sacked.
“It is also deeply troubling that one of those named remains as Deputy Leader of their council group. Reform's Group Leader in Solihull must explain why he still holds that position.
“All three must resign their seats and let residents choose representatives who reflect the values of this borough. I also call on Solihull Council to take every step open to it, including the Code of Conduct process, to hold them to account and sack them.
"Liberal Democrats stand with every resident who has been made to feel unwelcome by these remarks. Solihull is better than this."
Solihull and Meriden Liberal Democrats
We represent Liberal Democrat Members, Volunteers, Campaigners, Councillors and Candidates within the Local Authority area of Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council.
The Local Authority area straddles three separate parliamentary constituencies - the Solihull West and Shirley constituency, the Meriden and Solihull East constituency and the two Solihull wards in the Birmingham Hodge Hill and Solihull North constituency.
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