The Nasty Party is alive and well, and delivering election leaflets on a street near you.
Tory councillor: Shaun Slator
Inside Croydon reported last year the case of the misogynist Bromley councillor, Shaun Slator, who was suspended from the Conservative Party for his “despicable” and “dangerous and stupid” rape-shaming comments.
Slator, a councillor for St Mary Cray ward, posted comments on Twitter in early 2023 that suggested that the victim of a rape in a park was likely a sex worker. Underneath a link to an online news story reporting a rape in Plumstead he wrote: “More likely that it’s a punter that didn’t pay.”
He later deleted the post and deactivated his social media account.
Slator was the chair of the Bromley and Chislehurst Conservative Association at the time.
After condemnation from opposition parties on Bromley Council, and Jess Phillips, Labour’s parliamentary spokesperson on domestic violence, Slator made a sorry-not-sorry apology before spending the next year sulking on the back benches, still drawing his councillor allowance as an “independent”.
And all the time Slator was allowed to carry on in his job at Westminster, as a parliamentary assistant to Jackie Doyle-Price, the Tory MP for Thurrock and a former minister under Thick Lizzie Truss.
According to a Conservative spokesperson, “Mr Slator has been readmitted to the Conservative Party after sincerely apologising for his actions as well as undertaking training and outreach with community groups.”
“Outreach”. Hmmm.
Slator has taken to hiding details of his day job under the declarations of interest on the Bromley website, under the terms of Section 32(2) of the Localism Act. This states that work details may be withheld from the public if the councillor or the council’s monitoring officer consider that disclosure “could lead to the member… being subject to violence or intimidation”. Hmmm.
As far as Bromley Conservatives are concerned, all seems to be forgiven: Slator is now listed as vice-chair, executive, resources and contracts PDS committee on Bromley Council now.
While he’s back within the fold of Bromley Tories – the same people who have been warned by the Metropolitan Police not to deliver election leaflets which appear to show a Met endorsement of their candidates – Slator’s employment position is a little more precarious elsewhere.
Couple of charmers: Jackie Doyle-Price and the former Thurrock council leader Mark ‘Laughing Boy’ Coxshall
Having handed in his Palace of Westminster pass after the dissolution last month, Slator might soon find himself officially unemployed.
Doyle-Price could lose her seat at the General Election. In which case, staff in her parliamentary office will get their P45s, too.
Such an outcome would be a bit of a double whammy for Doyle-Price’s household, because for the past 14 years she’s managed to get her partner, Mark Coxshall, on to the Westminster gravy train, too, working in her office at significant public expense. So he might be looking for a new job as well.
Coxshall describes himself as “Experienced chief of staff with a demonstrated history of working in the political organisation industry. Skilled in public affairs, political communication, elections, political science and government.
“Strong administrative professional.”
This description seems unrecognisable from the Mark Coxshall who was a Conservative councillor at Thurrock, and for a spell was even the leader of the Conservative group that controlled the council which went bust with even bigger financial problems than Croydon.
But hey… give it a couple of months, as the consultancies are sure to be knocking on his door.
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ROTTEN BOROUGH AWARDS: In January 2024, Croydon was named among the country’s rottenest boroughs for a SEVENTH successive year in the annual round-up of civic cock-ups in Private Eye magazine
Slator? Slater, more like it. As in woodlouse (mind you, they’re useful and are not parasites)