UK councillor faces trial over offensive social media post
A judge is set to decide whether a suspended Reform UK councillor’s social media post suggesting Nigerians be melted down to fill potholes was a criminal offence, reports BritPanorama.
Sunderland City councillor Glenn Gibbins, 66, denies posting a grossly offensive message on Facebook in March 2024, before he was elected.
Gibbins was suspended by Reform after allegations he had complained on social media about the “amount of Nigerians in town” and made a later-deleted post: “Should melt them all down and fill in the pot holes!!”
At South Tyneside Magistrates’ Court earlier this year, District Judge Zoe Passfield stated: “The issue is very straightforward, was the message offensive, which Mr Gibbins agrees it was, or was it grossly offensive?”
Addressing the right to freedom of expression, the judge noted: “Was it sufficiently offensive to override his Article 10 rights?”
Northumbria Police launched an investigation after the post surfaced in May.
A trial lasting three hours is scheduled for Monday at the same court, where the councillor has been on unconditional bail.
