Plaid warns ruling coalition over Wrexham mayor: "This is becoming a rogue council"

 

Plans by Wrexham's ruling Tory-independent coalition to appoint a suspended councillor as mayor will bring the council into disrepute.

That's the view of the Plaid Cymru group ahead of a key vote at full council on Wednesday.

Cllr Paul Rogers of Brymbo was last month suspended from the council for three months after an Ombudsman investigation found he had abused his position in a dispute with a resident.

Despite this, the ruling coalition is proposing his name goes forward as the next mayor of Wrexham.

Cllr Marc Jones, who leads the Plaid Cymru group on Wrexham Council, said: "It's quite astounding that the ruling coalition is ignoring warnings that this move will bring the authority into disrepute. Reaction to the news has been almost universally hostile and this is fast becoming a rogue council where the proper processes are being ignored and the political leadership is playing fast and loose with the constitution.

"The process of selecting the deputy mayor was dubious to say the least, what's gone on at the licensing committee has made it to Private Eye's Rotten Boroughs column and now this. People will question whether this is just the tip of the iceberg."

Cllr Jones said he believed the vote would be very close and, as a result, he would be requesting a recorded vote so that the people of Wrexham could see how their councillors voted. He added: "The Plaid Cymru group will not be supporting a person who is suspended as a councillor to be the next mayor of the borough. I hope other councillors will realise that you can't reward bad behaviour."