Councillor suspended over planning claims

An East Devon councillor alleged to have influenced planning decisions has been suspended by the East Devon Conservatives.

Graham Brown has also been removed as Member Champion for Business and Tourism on East Devon District Council as an investigation into this morning’s revelations by The Telegraph gets underway.

Mr Brown, the Conservative councillor for Feniton and Buckerell, who also runs a planning consultancy firm,  was secretly filmed by the Daily Telegraph claiming he had "access to all the right people for the right clients".

Cllr Paul Diviani, Leader of the Conservative group on East Devon District Council said: "I and other members feel that Cllr Brown has brought himself, the party and council into disrepute with his comments, and even though his interest as a planning consultant has been declared this does not excuse the remarks he made.

"This was not conduct becoming of a Conservative Party member, and as such I think it is only appropriate to suspend Cllr Brown from the Party and seek a resolution from members that he should no longer be welcome as a representative of the East Devon Conservative Group (removal from the party is not within the remit of the EDDC Conservative Group where matters of this nature are dealt with by the relevant Conservative Party Constituency Association).

"Cllr Brown is not a member of the council's planning committee, and whilst there is no immediate evidence of Cllr Brown exerting any improper influence on planning decisions; with his claims he has tarred the council, its staff and other Members with the same unpleasant brush."

However, Cllr Brown said on BBC Radio Devon "I'm shocked. I didn't expect this and fervently believe I've done nothing wrong." 

The East Devon Conservative Party Group is set to meet on 20 March and may ratify proposals to remove Cllr Brown from the East Devon District Council Conservative Party Group at that meeting.