Conservative councillors resign over anti-Muslim posts

Senior Convservatives have been accused of failing to clamp down on Islamaphobia

LONDON. 27th September 2010. Baroness Sayeeda Warsi at her office in London. Stephen Lock for The National  FOR MAGAZINE.
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Two councillors from Britain’s ruling Conservative party have resigned after they were accused of sharing Islamophobic posts on social media. It comes after the Tory’s suspended 14 members on Tuesday who had posted anti-Muslim videos on a Facebook group.

The BBC named the two men as Len Milner and Chris Smith of East Staffordshire council. They were said to have 'liked' a carton on Facebook that showed the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, a Muslim, being beheaded.

Reports said members of the council who were Labour walked out of a meeting in protest on Monday over the posts, which have now seemingly been taken down.

Both Tory men have now quit, although Mr MIlner claimed to have been cleared of any offence.

"We are a proudly anti-racist association and will not tolerate any form of prejudice including Islamophobia or anti-semitism," said Aaron Bell, treasurer of the  East Staffordshire Conservative Association.

Former Conservative Chairwoman Baroness Warsi has consistently said members of the party had failed to tack Islamophobia in the party.

The 14 suspended on Tuesday had posted on an unofficial supporters group for Jacob Rees-Mogg, the right-wing and Eurosceptic Conservative member, who distanced himself from their views.

“When we find evidence of members making offensive or inappropriate comments, we consistently take decisive action. Discrimination or abuse of any kind is wrong and will not be tolerated,” a Conservative party spokesman said at the time.