'Foreigner' remark by ex-mayor was a joke

A FORMER Lord Mayor said he made remarks about a council employee being a "foreigner" in jest.

Coun John Fareham, who is accused of breaching the code of conduct for councillors, told a hearing at Hull Council he wouldn't knowingly cause offence to people.

The veteran councillor is facing claims of bullying his former support officer Inga Jorgensen, who left the authority last year.

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Mrs Jorgensen told a standards committee hearing at the city's Guildhall the councillor addressed her as "foreigner", "woman" or "wonk" and sometimes he sent her instructions using Latin phrases, adding: "Sometimes I felt he did it on purpose, a form of obfuscation."

She said she tried on several occasions to raise her problems with line managers and was warned by the head of service not to "sour" relations, leaving her feeling "very vulnerable", and eventually making her ill.

Cross-examined by Coun Fareham's solicitor John Gibson, she said when she protested about having to arrange for hair appointments and having his car MoT'd, he would tell her: "Whatever I tell you to do is your role".

Her colleague Andy Stankard said Coun Fareham's treatment "had a real impact", adding: "She took it personally and it was undermining her."

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Coun Fareham insisted, however, he had "batted for the staff." He said he knew she was born in Yorkshire, and calling her foreigner was a "casual remark" made in jest. In an interview with the investigating officer, he said: "It's the tone it's said that makes all the difference. It's ok for her to mock my drink Bovril – and my clothes (I wear cloaks sometimes). She will say I look like Dracula but I don't get upset about it."

The panel, which will reconvene at a later date, also heard statements from character witnesses including council manager Richard Forrester, who described Coun Fareham as a "character" who added "a splash of colour" to the council.

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