'Aggressive' councillor 'bullied and failed to treat others with respect' - probe report finds

A LEICESTERSHIRE parish councillor bullied and failed to "treat others with respect," a report has found.

- By TESS RUSHIN

Councillor Paul Taylor was found to be in breach of the Sapcote Parish Council's code of conduct following a row between him and fellow parish councillor, Laura Badland.

A hearing panel of Blaby District Council heard the row in November last year followed a complaint from Coun Badland over a post made by Coun Taylor on the "Sapcote News" Facebook page.

In that, he had seen a white van in the area and described the passengers as "foreign".

The district council report heard that following this post, an online exchange between the councillors broke out and was then followed up at the Sapcote Parish Council meeting in December 2024.

Coun Badland alleged that Coun Taylor's behaviour towards her both during the meeting and immediately after in the car park was "aggressive" and "intimidating" and that she was scared for her personal safety.

The report heard allegations that Coun Taylor confronted her about her criticism of him on the Sapcote News page.

Documents note Paul Taylor is a parish councillor and "has been for a number of years". At the time of submitting the complaint Laura Badland was a Sapcote parish councillor, however, she resigned her position during the course of the investigation, they add.