Lib Dems suspend former Devon County Council leader

Brian Greenslade will now sit as an Independent after sexual harassment allegations

Just days after Devon County Council formally censured a long-standing and high-profile councillor, he has been suspended from his party.

Councillor Brian Greenslade, who led the council between 1993 and 2009 and was runner up in the police and crime commissioner election in 2012, has had his access to council buildings restricted. The Liberal Democrats have have implied he hasn't had a fair hearing, saying he was on holiday at the time of a hearing into his alleged behaviour towards some council staff and that his request to wait for the meeting to wait for his return was refused.

On Friday, Councillor Greenslade was suspended from the Liberal Democratic Party. He's also been removed from the party's places on council committees and the Devon and Somerset Fire Service, on which he was a Lib Dem representative.

Current Liberal Democrat leader Councillor Alan Connett had voiced his concerns that the whistle could have been blown earlier. “I became Leader of the Liberal Democrat opposition at Devon County Council in 2014. At no time since then has the council’s Chief Executive, Solicitor, or any other officer raised a concern with me about councillor behaviour. Devon County Council may well have a hidden culture of ‘see nothing, say nothing, hear nothing’ and we need to be clear that managers and councillors must not ‘turn a blind eye’ if a member of staff or customer of the council is concerned about the behaviour displayed to them.

A Devon County Council spokesperson says: “This is not about organisational culture it is about the behaviour of Councillor Greenslade and the impact of his actions on those women affected. The independent investigation made clear that, Councillor Greenslade was perceived as arrogant and a bully.

“As Leader of the Council he was the most powerful man at the Council and it is during this period that most of the incidents occurred. If relatively junior managers of the day knew of an allegation it is perhaps unsurprising that they too would have been fearful. However, our primary concern is the welfare of staff and the culture of the organisation today."

The joint statement, issued by the four party leaders on the council says they must ensure that staff enjoy a safe and welcoming environment.

Following his suspension by the Lib Dems, Mr Greenslade is now an independent councillor, representing Barnstaple North on Devon County Council.