Former Hartlepool Labour Councillor Steve Wallace is facing calls to resign, after pleading guilty to a lesser charge of Assault by Beating, after originally facing an allegation of 'sexual assault'.....
24th Jan 2025
A former Hartlepool Labour Councillor who now sits as an Independent may soon face a formal council standards investigation leading to him being formally excluded from council meetings, after admitting to assault by beating this week at York Crown Court.
The now Independent Councillor, Steve Wallace had initially been charged with sexual assault, an allegation which was said to have involved another Hartlepool Labour Councillor Last year, where he pleaded not guilty to the charge. However, at a hearing earlier this month at York Crown Court, prosecutors reportedly dropped the sexual assault charge accepting instead the town councillors guilty plea for one count of assault by beating.
HBC now has four elected councillors with Criminal Convictions
Councillor Wallace, who represents Hartlepool’s Throston Ward, told a local newspaper that he is now considering his future on the local council which in 2023 was declared an authority of no public confidence, with Hartlepool Borough Council now boasting at least four serving town councillors with recorded criminal convictions.
Cllr Wallace left the Labour Party just months after being elected as a Labour Councillor in May 2023 claiming his departure was due to "a falling out with the local party", sources told HBC Exposed however that he left after allegations of his sexual assault came to light when the Labour Councillor he was reported to have 'assaulted' then made a complaint to Labour North the parties regional head office.
The councillor, who was fined £200 and ordered to pay £500 in compensation to his victim, could now face an independent council standards investigation to determine whether he should be disciplined by the local council for his criminal conviction, a move which could lead to his formal removal from all council meetings....
In a similar case in 2022, former Conservative Councillor for the towns Seaton Ward, now Independent Councillor, Gordon Cranney, was formally censured by Hartlepool Borough Council after being found guilty of assault at Teesside Magistrates Court. At the time, Labour Councillors vehemently called for Cranney’s resignation, which he refused.
The sanctions imposed by the council’s audit and governance committee included restricting Cllr Cranney’s access to council premises for the remainder of his elected term, where is likely Councillor Wallace could now face similar consequences if he chooses to remain in office.
A spectacular fall from grace for the town Councillor who was of previous 'good character'....
Councillor Wallace, who'd previously served as a labour Councillor for the town over a decade ago & was the former PR to the former Labour MP Peter Mandleson faced further scrutiny last year when his directorship of the childcare company company 'Ready Steady Grow' was reportedly referred to Ofsted. The referral followed revelations about his alleged sexual assault allegation, of which its claimed Ofsted inspectors reportedly then issued a warning to the childcare company for failing to report the allegations against Wallace (who was a director of the business at the time) to authorities within a reasonable timescale.
The situation comes as its claimed local councils could soon be given greater powers to disqualify councillors from their roles as elected members of the borough after public outcry over councillors being convicted of criminal offences comes to light, with many claiming councillors 'bad behaviour' is undermining public trust in local democracy with Councillor Wallace said to be reflecting on his future following his conviction for assault, raising the question over whether he will step down voluntarily or face a final humiliation being removed from all council activities raising yet another question over whether that would be fair to the local tax payer ?
Have Your Say ...
Should former Labour Councillor Steve Wallace RESIGN as councillor following his conviction for assault ?
YES
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