An Ipswich councillor who shared Islamophobic tweets has been suspended by the Conservative Party – and could face the possibility of expulsion at a special meeting on Wednesday.
Earlier this week we revealed that Steve Flood, councillor for Sprites ward, had retweeted two Twitter posts that were widely seen as Islamophobic. One called for Islam to be banned in the UK and another said Islam was a faith that does not allow free speech.
Ipswich MP Tom Hunt expressed his outrage at the posts being retweeted – saying they were clearly Islamophobic and there was no place for them in a mainstream political party.
Now Ian Fisher, leader of the Conservative group at Ipswich Borough Council, has released a statement saying: "On Friday morning the Ipswich Conservative Association suspended Cllr Steve Flood following allegations that appeared in the press on Thursday.
"The suspension includes removal of the whip from the Conservative Group at the Borough Council.
"Cllr Flood will appear before the Executive of the Association at a meeting due to be held on Wednesday, August 24. Following this meeting, a decision will be made as to the future of Cllr Flood's membership of the Conservative Party.
"We take extremely seriously any allegation made against a party member, especially those in elected positions and will deal with them swiftly. To maintain the integrity of the process no further comment will be made until the matter has been concluded."
Mr Flood, who is now listed as an independent councillor on the Ipswich Borough Council website, has also been told not to make any comment about the current situation.
Wednesday's meeting will have a wide range of options to consider.
A meeting earlier this year suspended fellow Tory councillor Shayne Pooley for several months and ordered him to get social media training after he posted on Facebook in support of Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine. The party also said it would monitor Cllr Pooley's social media activity.
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