Alsager’s mayor has apologised for bringing the town council into disrepute almost a year after being ordered to do so.
Cheshire East’s monitoring officer demanded the public apology from Coun Pauline Hubbard in July last year, following an investigation into a complaint made by Coun Reg Kain.
As previously reported, Coun Kain claimed he had been “bullied and harangued” by Coun Hubbard after a meeting in which she was elected deputy mayor in May last year.
He said he had been “deliberately detained” in the reception area of the Civic by former town councillor Phil Williams, since re-elected, after he had tried to raise his concerns during the meeting about the election of Coun Hubbard.
He said: “(Mr Williams) kept me talking, then everyone was around me, having a go at me about an issue that I felt was important.”
Standing in the foyer of the Civic, Coun Kain said Coun Hubbard repeatedly asked him to explain his concerns, while Coun June Buckley, Coun Richard McCarthy and Mr Williams stood around him.
He later complained to Cheshire East’s monitoring officer, the department that oversees the enforcement of councillors’ behaviour.
In a determination letter in July last year from deputy monitoring officer Julie Gregory, she said: “The discussions after the meeting led to embarrassing scenes being played out in front of those present.
“I conclude, in seeking to engage with Coun Kain in these conversations, Coun Hubbard did breach the code and brought the council into disrepute.
“At the next council meeting, Coun Hubbard will make an unqualified apology to Coun Kain and Alsager Town Council.”
It added that minutes from the meeting should be sent by the town clerk to the monitoring officer – but the apology did not come until last Tuesday’s meeting.
Alsager resident Tony Weston, who attended the meeting, said he felt “deeply frustrated” by the response to his question.
He said: “I asked them whether all apologies that had been determined by the monitoring officer had been made and recorded. Prior to that, Pauline Hubbard had made a formal apology.
“Paraphrasing, she basically said that if a councillor chose not to apologise after a ruling by the monitoring officer, there was nothing that could be done.”
Mr Weston said he felt that there was “no real transparency or accountability” in the complaints process of local government, with all monitoring officer complaints treated as strictly confidential, which meant councillors could not be publicly held to account.
As we reported in August, a vote of no confidence was upheld in Coun Unett when he was mayor, after “inappropriate and offensive” merchandise was sold at Alsager Pride last year, which was advertised as a family-friendly event.
As well as mayor, Coun Unett was also chair of Pride in Alsager at that time.
Three members of the public complained to the town council, which advised that any concerns should be raised with Cheshire East’s monitoring officer.
A ruling on the incident, which has been seen by the “Chronicle” said Coun Unett should make an “unqualified public apology” to the town council.
Coun Unett told the “Chronicle” earlier this month that he had already apologised and that a public apology had also been issued by Pride in Alsager.
He said: “The apology was made at the time, therefore I don’t see any need to waste the council’s, or anyone else’s, time apologising for something I’ve already apologised for.”
Mr Weston said since Tuesday’s meeting, he had been told by town clerk Julie Mason that only Coun Hubbard’s apology had been noted in council meeting minutes since she took over the role in March 2024.
Coun Hubbard said she did not wish to comment.
