Highland councillor cleared of posting rude tweets
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A HIGHLAND councillor has been cleared of allegations she posted a series of disrespectful tweets on her website.
SNP member Liz MacDonald was reported to the Commissioner for Ethical Standards in Public Life in Scotland last month for tweets made between April 18 and September 19 this year.
The complaint was raised by fellow councillor Michael Green and two others, who alleged that Councillor MacDonald had failed to comply with the Code of Conduct. The full details of their complaint were not been published.
In August, Councillor MacDonald, a member for Nairn, apologised for posting a remark on Twitter in reply to a post by John Erskine, the Westminster Labour candidate for Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross.
Mr Erskine had tweeted about attending an independence debate and Councillor MacDonald replied: "Taking your butcher’s apron with you?"
The comment was a reference to Mr Erskine’s profile picture, which showed him waving the UK flag.
Mrs MacDonald apologised for the comment after Mr Erskine claimed it had negative connotations relating to concentration camps in the Boer War and attacks on civilians in the Iraq War.
Bill Thomson, Commissioner, said there was no case to answer.
He said: "In this case, and despite the fact that Councillor MacDonald’s status as an elected member was readily identifiable, I concluded that her actions in posting the social media tweets which prompted the complaint were personal and not part of her role as a councillor."
