Politics: Councillor rebuked over email

AN EX-MAYOR of North Yorkshire's county town has been reprimanded for sending a disrespectful email about a former town clerk to fellow councillors.

Coun Tony Hall has been sent a letter of censure by Hambleton District Council's standards board after he emailed the disparaging message about former town clerk David Severs.

Coun Hall, who has been the Mayor of Northallerton for a total of four years with his last tenure ending earlier this year, is a member of both Hambleton District Council and North Yorkshire County Council.

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He sent the email in January, in his capacity as a town councillor.

It is understood that Coun Hall accused Dr Severs of a "hunger to have the last word", and described the former town clerk's time in service as the "worst in the council's history for councillor/clerk relationships".

Coun Hall maintained the reprimand was at the "bottom of the scale" as far as a standards issue was concerned and added: "They (the standards board) said I should not have written the email and not to do it again –- as far as I am concerned that is it.

"We are elected councillors and we do the very best we are able to and we cannot please everybody at all times."

The investigation was launched after Dr Severs, who was Northallerton's town clerk during the mid-1990s, made an official complaint.