The Local Government Association (LGA) has spoken out after a councillor threatened to name any locally elected members in the UK who did not sign up to support a ceasefire in Israel and Gaza.
James Giles, a councillor at The Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, said he would publish the names of those who did not sign up to a ceasefire in an email he said was being sent to ‘all 19,102 district, county and unitary councillors’ in the UK.
In a statement on behalf of all LGA group leaders, the association’s chair, Shaun Davies, said the LGA did not share any councillor email contact information.
‘Pending investigation, Cllr Giles has stood down from all formal positions within the LGA and all upcoming speaking opportunities at our events, with immediate effect,' he added.
Cllr Giles said on Twitter that he had not agreed to stand down from any LGA roles and had only agreed to a temporary suspension.
He accused the LGA of issuing a ‘false and defamatory statement’.
To be clear and for the avoidance of doubt: I have not agreed to stand down from any roles @LGAcomms. I agreed to a temporary suspension “until the heat dies down” on the advice of the @LGA_Independent group leader.
— Cllr James Giles (@JamesGilesRBK) November 20, 2023
For the LGA to issue such a statement is false and defamatory.
Cllr Giles has also reportedly admitted his letter was ‘clumsily worded’ and that he would only publish the names of those who gave him permission to do so.
Cllr Davies said Kingston council’s monitoring officer, the Information Commissioner’s Office and the Metropolitan Police were all aware of the situation.
Kingston council said: 'We are currently looking into the details surrounding this matter and are unable to provide any further comment at this stage.’
