Apology given to councillor as complaint is resolved

Councillor David Seaton, cabinet member for resources at Peterborough City Council, has said sorry to Cllr Fower, Liberal Democrat member for Gunthorpe.

Cllr Fower put in a complaint to the council’s monitoring officer in October saying Cllr Seaton, member for Hampton Vale, directed the words “depressive” then a swear word at him.

The comments are alleged to have been said following a heated council meeting.

The Peterborough Telegraph has seen an emailed apology from Cllr Seaton to Cllr Fower.

Cllr Seaton told the PT the matter had been “all dealt with internally,” but he did not wish to comment on the email.

Cllr Fower said he had received an apology, and he said the swear word used towards him was “not acceptable.”

He added: “As this word was used in a way that I believed related to my mental health issues last year, it shows how much work still needs to be done to educate people - even elected members - about dealing with mental health in our city.”

A council spokesman said: “The matter has been resolved between the two councillors concerned.”