Row over Milton Keynes councillor's 'racist' comment erupts again after he was cleared of wrongdoing

Conservative councillor Terry Baine was hauled up before the council's Standards Committee over a post he wrote on social media.

Written after the government's vote on the Immigration Bill in May, it stated: "It is time to stop the invasion of migrants and time to send a lot back.”

He apologised immediately afterwards and removed the post, saying he didn't mean it to sound as harsh as it did.

"I thought I was just agreeing with the MPs," he said at the time.

City MPs Iain Stewart and Ben Everitt had both voted in favour of the Bill, which seeks to end "low-skilled" immigration altogether at the end of this year through a new post-Brexit migration system.

Cllr Baines said: "We all know we have a problem with immigration and we need to do something about it. Some people may agree with me, others may not, I'm not one to mince my words, but at the same time I didn't mean my comment to sound quite like it did."

Last week a Standards Sub-Committee made up of just three councillors voted two to one to not investigate Cllr Baines over the comment - despite all agreeing the post was inappropriate.

But ruling Labour councillors are far from happy with this stance.

Council leader Pete Marland said today: “The decision of the sub-committee appears flawed. It took matters into account that it should not have done and does not appear to have given sufficient weight to either the recommendations of an independent review of the allegations nor the harm the comments have done."

He added; "It is very rare for councillors to be asked to review a decision like this, but I believe this matter is so incredibly important that the full committee should debate if a mistake was made in dismissing the matter without any investigation. I think the sub-committee not only made a bad decision, it made a flawed one.

Cllr Douglas McCall, leader of the Liberal Democrat Group said: “The sub-committee seems to have got this wrong. It seems to have reached a conclusion based on not properly taking into account all the matters it should.

"I do not think racism is ever a trivial matter, and I think the sub-committee minimising the hurt in the community and to the people that complained, while taking into account irreverent matters means the decision should be reviewed and the facts looked at again properly and within the rules. The formal decision to essentially clear Cllr Baines despite everyone agreeing his comments were wrong seems ludicrous to most people.”

Cllr Baines represents the Campbell Park and Old Woughton ward on the council and has been an ambassador for the Fishermead area for decades.

Conservative group leader Cllr Alex Walker said today: “The cross-party standards committee made the decision. Cllr Terry Baines said something completely unacceptable, he held his hands up, apologised and has faced consequences including losing his role as Armed Forces Champion and attending a diversity course. What is there to investigate? It would be spending tax payers money and Council time to tell us Cllr Baines’ comments were completely unacceptable - which we already all agree.”

He added: "The leader of the Council and leader of the Lib Dem’s just want distract the press and public from their failure to grasp the local Covid-19 economic recovery, which is deeply concerning.”