EXCLUSIVE Row breaks out over Tory minister’s ‘racist’ election leaflet about Gypsies and Travellers: Constituents are split over campaign ad accusing Labour of trying to build sites – while MPs brand police probe a ‘waste of time’
- The leaflet was headed ‘Gypsy and Traveller Sites Coming to Your Area Soon’
A row has erupted after a Tory minister was accused of handing out ‘racist’ election leaflets about Gypsies and Travellers, leaving locals in the Welsh town divided over the campaign.
Welsh Secretary David TC Davies handed out the fliers headed ‘Gypsy and Traveller Sites Coming to Your Area Soon’ to his constituents in Monmouth, South Wales.
The leaflet, that also contained a survey including the question ‘would you like to sea traveller site next to your house’, follows the Labour-run county council’s proposal to create four new sites for the communities.
It led to the Travelling Ahead Advocacy and Advice Service, which provides support to Wales-based Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities complaining to the Conservative Party, the Equality Commission and Gwent Police.
The potential police probe, however, was criticised as a ‘waste of police time’ by a source close to the Home Secretary Suella Braverman while Tory MP Lee Anderson also urged the force to concentrate on ‘catching real criminals’.
But some locals criticised the leaflet for stirring up an ‘us and them’ mentality’ while others said the under-fire MP deserved ‘a pat on the back’ for highlighting a lack of consultation by Monmouthshire council.
Welsh Secretary David TC Davies handed out the fliers headed ‘Gypsy and Traveller Sites Coming to Your Area Soon’ to his constituents in Monmouth, South Wales
Mr Davies denied that the flyer was discriminatory, adding that the proposals were a ‘legitimate matter for public debate and scrutiny’
A resident in Mitchel Troy, one of the areas earmarked for a Gypsy and Traveller site, said the leaflets were divisive.
He said: ‘It’s not something I’d agree with. The county council had a statutory duty to come up with sites and the Conservatives set the ball in 2019 when they were in charge. The council officers had to come up with a list of sites but not a single person thought they were any good, including Travellers who were consulted.’
Some locals in the village of Obaston, however, said the MP deserved ‘a pat on the back’ for his leaflet, claiming that Mr Davies was simply doing his job by highlighting a lack of consultation by Monmouthshire Council.
They added that it was ‘a complete waste of resources’ at a time when real crimes were not being investigated.
Architect Pete Ashby, 64, said: ‘I think his wording on the leaflet was a bit clunky in asking his constituents if they would like to live next to a gypsy site.
‘But he was trying to highlight a concern that people in Monmouth are now listening to and in that context he was doing his job.’
Mr Ashby said the controversy over the language used in Davies’s leaflet had highlighted the fact that there had been no consultation with people in Monmouth.
Lee Anderson, an outspoken deputy chairman of the Conservative Party at Westminster, suggested he would be prepared to issue a similar leaflet in his constituency
He added: ‘What is wrong with saying does anyone want to live next door to a Traveller site? It’s just asking a question.
‘Mr Davies has highlighted a problem that everyone is afraid to mention. The perception is that all travellers are a problem and that is not the case at all.
‘I hope Mr Davies gets a pat on the back.’
Another villager in leafy Osbaston, just half a mile North of Monmouth, said: ‘It’s a complete waste of police resources.
‘The police around here don’t act if you get broken into or have your car stolen so they have better things to do than investigate the content of this pamphlet.
‘Whatever happened to free speech? It’s just a couple of members of the woke brigade stirring things up.’
Mr Davies denied that the flyer was discriminatory, adding that the proposals were a ‘legitimate matter for public debate and scrutiny’.
In a statement, Mr Davies denied the flyer was discriminatory and said the proposed sites were ‘a legitimate matter for public debate and scrutiny’.
He added: ‘I have been contacted by many upset residents at the shortness of the consultation and the proposed locations for the site.’
Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden defended the MPs actions, adding: ‘He is standing up for his constituents, making their case for them and I totally support his right to do that’
The proposals – that are now on hold – have caused controversy in the South Wales county for a number of months, with even some members of the Traveller community reportedly opposing the locations.
Gwent Police are currently investigating Mr Davies campaign after Trudy Aspinwall, a project manager at the Travelling Ahead Advocacy and Advice Service, called the leaflet a ‘disproportionate and hostile response targeted at the race and ethnicity’ of Gypsies and Travellers.
She added it would ‘make them feel like they are not wanted anywhere’.
The fore said it is reviewing the complaint and will make a decision on whether to investigate in due course.
But a source close to the Home Secretary said: ‘The police should be laser-focused on further cutting crime and not investigating legitimate public concern.
‘This appears to be a waste of time. The public want to see police out on their streets preventing crime and catching criminals, not inspecting MPs’ leaflets.’
Meanwhile the Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden told Sky News: ‘No, and I think what David TC Davies was doing was highlighting the failure of the local Labour council to carry out a proper consultation on this, that is entirely what people would expect their local members of Parliament to do.
‘He is standing up for his constituents, making their case for them and I totally support his right to do that.’
Andrew RT Davies, leader of the Conservatives in the Welsh Senedd, said: ‘I urge Gwent police to focus on the job at hand, and not harass elected representatives.
‘Throughout his time in Westminster, David TC Davies has been a fantastic constituency Member of Parliament for Monmouth, and always puts his constituents first.’
And Lee Anderson, an outspoken deputy chairman of the Conservative Party at Westminster, even suggested he would be prepared to issue a similar leaflet in his constituency.
He said: ‘It’s a great leaflet and I have asked David to send me a template so I can get some printed. The police need to concentrate on catching real criminals.’
But the Traveller community in Monmouthshire welcomed the police investigation.
A spokesman said: ‘He’s completely out of order and should be looked into by the police and other agencies.
‘Davies wouldn’t be sending out leaflets like this if a new housing estate was going up- it is discrimination.
‘Travellers are human beings – I don’t think someone as high up as him should paint all one race the same.’
Detective Inspector Steve Thomas, of Gwent Police, said: ‘Officers are reviewing the content of the leaflet and its impact on the gypsy and traveller and settled communities in Monmouthshire.’
Last week, Monmouthshire Council, which wants to create pitches for up to 13 families, said its cabinet had decided to defer consultation on new Gypsy and Traveller accommodation ‘to allow more consideration’.
Source: Read Full Article
