A new survey by the Local Government Association (LGA) has found that over a fifth of councillors have received a death threat or a threat of violence (22 per cent) due to their role*, whilst 23 per cent of councillors have suffered abuse serious enough to report to the police.
The survey is part of the LGA’s Debate Not Hate Campaign. Around half of respondents said they felt the abuse had got worse over the past 12 months, and 73 per cent of councillors experienced abuse or intimidation in their role in the past year.
One in 10 councillors had someone attend their home in a way that they considered intimidating or inappropriate, and 43 per cent had requested to withhold their home address from the public due to safety concerns.
10 per cent had experienced a threat of damage to their property, and 5 per cent had experienced actual damage to property. 11 per cent considered that they needed modifications to their home security but had been unable to make them for financial or personal reasons.
19 per cent of respondents had experienced abuse or intimidation relating to a protected characteristic. Sex was the most commonly cited characteristic for which respondents had suffered abuse or intimidation.
57 per cent of respondents reported that their authority’s arrangements for protecting councillors were very or fairly effective.
Councillors who responded to the survey highlighted that high levels of abuse, threats and misinformation online put them off using social media or engaging with debate online.
The LGA is calling on the Government to implement changes to improve councillors’ safety, including allowing councillors to withhold their addresses from publication and establishing a permanent cross-Whitehall unit to monitor, assess and address abuse, intimidation and safety of locally elected politicians and candidates.
Cllr Marianne Overton, Chair of the LGA’s Civility in Public Life Steering Group, said:
“These results are troubling – not only do they highlight the concerns for the safety and wellbeing of councillors, but show how violence and intimidation can be corrosive to our democracy as they discourage people from taking up public office and from speaking fairly on vital issues.
“People must be able to represent their communities safely and without fear. We need cohesive communities that can debate differences in peace. Poor behaviour doesn’t just impact the individual, it hurts everyone in communities, reducing the opportunity for open debate on important local issues. This has got to stop.
“We need Government to act decisively to ensure high levels of abuse do not become an accepted part of public life and that councillors are safe and confident as they carry out their vital elected role – working to represent their communities.”
