Angela Kilmartin, a Tory councillor, has apparently been suspended for saying that she does not want “Pride sex flags” on high streets in Essex.
Kilmartin, who works for Braintree District Council in Essex, is reportedly under investigation for making the statements on Facebook, according to the Daily Mail.
She went on to say: “Sex is for the bedroom and private life, not for displaying preferences in public.”
The debacle was ignited after a man offered to provide Pride flags to local businesses for the purpose of displaying them in shop windows in Witham.
Kilmartin, 81, responded on Wednesday, writing on Facebook: “I don’t want Pride sex flags along my high street. I don’t even want heterosexual flags along my high street.”
The Daily Mail reported that it is believed Kilmartin has been suspended by the Conservative council group for three weeks, with a full investigation pending.
Town council leader Michael Lager shared the following with the BBC after Kilmartin had made her comments: “We dissociate ourselves totally from the reported remarks from this particular member.”
“We do not tolerate discrimination between people of different faiths, beliefs and all the protected characteristics set out in the Equality Act 2010, that we respect and promote.”
A spokesman for the council took to Facebook after Kilmartin made her thoughts known, saying: “Witham Town Council has been made aware of comments that have been posted overnight by one of its elected Members. These views are not those of Witham Town Council as a corporate body and as such, we disown them.”
“The leader of the council, councillor Michael Lager, said: ‘I was disappointed to hear of this post as Witham Town Council have policies to promote equal and fair treatment for all that have been subscribed to by all its elected members.’”
The post also noted: “We celebrate the diversity of Witham and recognise this within our own organization in everything we do. We expect our Councillors and staff to do the same.”
Kilmartin told the BBC: “I stand by what I said. We didn't even have Olympic flags up when that was happening.”
