Labour council leader quits amid 'bullying, intimidation and plots' from far-left
2 min read
The leader of Labour’s council group in Cornwall has resigned, claiming he has been “actively attacked” by the far left.
Tim Dwelly stepped down from the role last week after 30 years in the partym saying that he can no longer “accept the intimidation” or support a “far-left takeover”.
In a letter to his constituents he took a swipe at senior local figures, accusing them of entryism.
“I feel the Labour party I joined all those years ago is no longer Labour. I haven’t changed, the party has. Many of those running the party in Cornwall today only joined to take it to the far left (sometimes after long memberships of hard left parties)."
Mr Dwelly said the decision to leave the Labour group and sit as an independent came after an escalation of “bullying, intimidation and plots.”
“Many of you will not be aware of how difficult things are today within Labour. It’s now common to experience rows, bullying, intimidation and plots. We’ve seen this being escalated across the country, it’s not just happening here.”
He said he did not want his family life to be affected by the “toxic environment”.
“It’s for other to consider their response to the tragic takeover of Labour. I have struggled with this for a long time, maybe too long. I know many others feel the same.”
He added: “The far left people who have taken over are more interested in controlling the party than actually delivering things that matter…
“Rather than accept a broad church, many of them are now actively attacking elected Labour councillors like me. I have been told blunty that they want to get rid of me.”
Mr Dwelly is the latest in a string of Labour figures to leave senior council positions.
Claire Kober quit as Haringey council leader last month after accusing other activists of “sexism, bullying, undemocratic behaviour and outright personal attacks”.
Days later Jon Clempner stepped down as leader of Harlow council in Essex, claiming that someone wearing a Corbyn t-shirt had called him a neo-Nazi, and that he had endured an “active campaign” against him organised by a local Momentum figure.
He said that Labour councillors who did not fit in with a “particular form of ideological purity that seems to have taken a grip of the party” faced abuse and harassment from far-left groups.
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