Earlier this week, Lewisham Council’s Labour Group voted in favour of our Chief Whip’s recommendation to suspend me from the Labour Group for 1 month. This decision was taken in response to me breaking the whip by abstaining from voting on two whipped motions during the Full Council meeting on July 21st 2021.
The first motion I abstained from voting on was a motion calling on Lewisham Council to adopt the All-Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslim’s working definition of Islamophobia. My reasons for rejecting this particular definition are outlined at length, here. In short, I believe this definition would have an unacceptable impact on free speech and it would be wrong for Lewisham Council to give this definition institutional legitimacy.
The second motion I abstained from was a short motion calling ‘on the Government to protect the right of communities to object to individual planning applications.’ I read this motion as offering support for our current case-by-case discretionary planning system which I have been openly critical of. I believed voting for this motion would undermine my stance on planning reform and undermine my integrity as a politician. I believe that witnessing a politician u-turn on a strongly held stance, simply because of the threat of their whip, undermines our collective faith in politicians. We want politicians to stand by what they believe.
You can read a brief explanation of my decision here. More of my thoughts on our current planning system and the potential for reform can be found here and here.
During my disciplinary meeting, I made it clear that I understood and accepted the Whip’s decision to reprimand me. However, I refused to apologise for my actions and said that I stand by my decision to break the whip on these votes.
I also made it clear that my intention was not to goad nor hurt colleagues by breaking the whip but I accept, that my decision may have upset some. While it is unfortunate that some council members or members of the public may have been offended or angered by my decision, it is impossible to please all, particularly when dealing with difficult or sensitive debates. This is reality.
I wanted to write this statement to be transparent with the residents of Forest Hill ward and the borough and make them aware of my suspension. I also wanted to take this opportunity to reiterate my stances on these issues and explain my decision.
Cllr Leo Gibbons
