An Oxford Labour councillor suspended from the Oxford Labour group after posting anti-Semitic and homophobic remarks on social media will be readmitted to the group when his suspension ends.
Earlier this year, Cherwell revealed that Ben Lloyd-Shogbesan shared posts comparing Israel to Nazi Germany, praising Gaddafi, and suggesting gay marriage was a “perversion”.
He also shared a post that claimed cancer was “only a deficiency of vitamin B17” and advised people to “avoid chemotherapy, surgery, or taking medicines with strong side effects”.
Lloyd-Shogbesan resigned from the group and was subsequently suspended over criticism of his posts.
At the time, leader of the Labour group and the council, Susan Brown, said that the material shared by Lloyd-Shogbesan was “inappropriate and offensive”.
She added: “In suspending councillor Lloyd-Shogbesan from the group, we disassociate ourselves from his actions and have told him there can never be a repeat of them or any other behaviour by him which brings the party and the group into disrepute.”
Other councillors criticised Labour’s decision to suspend him, one calling the move “extremely disappointing”.
An investigation by the city council’s standards committee found that he had not broken the code of conduct because he made the posts prior to his councillorship.
The national Labour Party reached the same conclusion as the Oxford City Council Standards Committee inquiry, agreeing to take no further action.
Lloyd-Shogbesan will be readmitted to the party after 1st January, following a suspension period of three months.
Lloyd-Shogbesan said: “I have never held anti-Semitic, homophobic or racist views and fully support the city council’s position on equality, diversity and inclusion.
“This has been a humbling and educational experience and I remain fully committed to serving the community of Oxford to the very best of my ability.”
Liberal Democrat councillor Andrew Gant said Labour had “taken the wrong course of action”, and “[Lloyd-Shogbesan’s] behaviour is incompatible with continuing as a councillor.”
Oxfordshire Green Party councillor Craig Simmons said: “If this had been someone from another party they would have certainly been forced to resign – hounded out by the Labour majority.”
