'Bickering' councillors accused of acting like 'nasty children on school playgrounds' in heated meeting
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GB News
A Gloucester City Council meeting descended into chaos as councillors were accused of acting like "nasty children" in a playground during what should have been a straightforward budget discussion.
The four-hour meeting at North Warehouse on January 20 was marked by "bickering, nastiness and finger-pointing from councillors," according to scrutiny committee vice-chairman Tree Chambers-Dubus.
The Labour councillor for Moreland condemned the behaviour during the single-item budget meeting, which she said had become "ridiculous" and resembled a playground rather than a civic forum.
The meeting was intended to discuss spending proposals for the 2025/26 financial year, but quickly veered off course into unrelated topics.
Tree Chambers-Dubus was speaking at the meeting
GCC/WikICommons
Instead of focusing on budget matters, councillors spent time debating whether the UK Government should ban the controversial herbicide, glyphosate. The meeting also became mired in accusations about councillors allegedly concealing information regarding indoor market rent issues.
Additional time was spent discussing how rough sleepers are counted in the city and methods for tackling graffiti.
"I thought it was a budget meeting," Chambers-Dubus told chairman Andrew Gravells three hours into the proceedings.
"Why are we getting into nitpicking at people, pointing the finger at people, making accusations at people," Chambers-Dubus demanded during the meeting.
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Chairman Andrew Gravells
GCC
She insisted the focus should have been on "how the finances translate to what our priorities should be".
"We probably could have got this meeting done in a fraction of the time," she said.
"A lot of what has been said, and the bickering, nastiness, quite frankly, is not actually going to have done anything or any good this evening other than keep people sitting here."
"It's ridiculous. It's like a playground," she concluded.
The conduct of council members has reportedly been a long-standing concern, with dozens of complaints recently submitted about councillor behaviour.
Labour councillor Tree Chambers-Dubus
GCC
A special panel has been established to address these complaints, according to council insiders.
The issues came to light publicly last May when then-mayor Kathy Williams used her outgoing speech to highlight bullying within the council.
Williams pledged to campaign for changes in legislation that would require councillors to undergo Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks.
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