The following - to all Councillors - arrived in my email Inbox entirely unsolicited:
Statement from Leader of the Council Andy Sutton:
“I clearly upset Councillors Lumley and Gardiner at last night’s Full Council meeting and would wish to clarify my position. It was not my intention in any way to undermine the freedom of any member to hold any religious belief or indeed to hold none.
“If (my italics) in any way what I said implied that I was criticising Cllr Lumley’s (or indeed any of his colleagues’) beliefs, then I unreservedly apologise. Quite clearly we are a council that wants to be inclusive in such matters and I am sorry if my words last night gave any other impression.
“On reflection, things can be said in the heat of the moment in the Chamber that can be misunderstood or taken in the wrong way. Let me be clear that my concern was with regard for the office of Chairman and not an attack on religious faith of members.”
What a bizarre way of going about things.
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5 comments:
He has had this written for him Geoff. He doesn't mean a word of it.
I read Sutton’s letter – fairly clear who wrote it for him. I don’t know why this anachronism of prayers isn’t done away with altogether: there’s no sign I have ever been able to see that divine intervention is a regular feature of local government.
If they choose to run things this way, i.e. have the chairman make his grand entrance and then go into prayers, they will have to put up with the fact that atheists have two choices: one is to stand there looking fixedly at nothing while the prayers are conducted – for which they could be criticized on the basis of dumb insolence, I suppose – the other is to come in when the prayers are over. I thought this particular fight had been won many years ago, by Charles Bradlaugh.
Robert
This was not miss understood or taking the wrong way, I sat there and heard what he said - it was as clear as day!
He is afraid of the repercussions of his comments and would have been warned by Mr Duckworth to blame it on a misunderstanding. Mr Duckworth may have written this for him!
Sara.
Unsolicited and unreserved. One suspects that Mr Sutton has sought, or maybe been forcibly given, advice. RJ
With each statement, and subsequent apology, the leader of the IW Council displays his true colours to the electorate.
I for one will remind my non-christian friends and colleagues that he is the person who stated that "If they don’t like it, go somewhere else" in relation to these Christian prayers when it comes to the re-election of him and his fellow Conservative Councillors. Where does he suggest I, and fellow non-christians, go??
I find it reprehensible that this individual is supported by the majority of Councillors on the Island ; are they truely happy to be associated with this point of view????
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