Ex-UKIP ‘Gay marriage caused storms’ councillor to face Council investigation
A former UKIP councillor who blamed flooding on equal marriage is to be formally investigated by officials.
David Silvester was suspended and then expelled from UKIP in February after blaming the floods of December 2013 and early this year on David Cameron’s decision to legalise equal marriage.
Mr Silvester remains an independent town councillor in Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire.
South Oxfordshire District Council announced on Friday it will now investigate whether he breached its code of conduct.
A council spokesman said: “We would expect the investigation to take a minimum of one month and to start in a couple of weeks.
“The investigator will judge the case against precedents to consider whether the code of conduct applies in this case.
“If the code of conduct is deemed to have applied, the investigation will judge whether the councillor breached [it].”
The strongest sanction the council can take is to issue a reprimand.
Earlier this month, a UKIP councillor in East Sussex was criticised for suggesting that business owners should have the right to turn away people based on their sexuality, gender or race.
