Darlington cllr David Beckett's future unclear after social media slur

Cllr David Beckett was suspended by Labour before the Darlington Borough Council local elections in May but was still elected as a member for the Brinkburn and Faverdale ward. It is believed the decision came too late for him to be removed from the ballot paper. 

In response to news that Brits would be invited to pledge their allegiance to King Charles during May’s Coronation events, a post on his twitter account read: “Are we seriously being asked to swear that we will ‘pledge allegiance to his Majesty, [his] heirs and successors according to law’?

“There isn’t a chance in hell of me giving such an affirmation to a n***e.”

Cllr Beckett has since deleted his Twitter account following a backlash over the comments, though it is not clear who the tweet was referring to. (Image: Twitter)

He has since deleted his account following a backlash over the comments, though it is not clear who the tweet was referring to.

But, as a Darlington councillor last week and was present at May’s Annual General Meeting, where Labour cllr Steve Harker was elected leader of the council. He is also listed as a Labour member on the Darlington Borough Council website. 

In a statement following the online post the Darlington Labour group said: “We have been notified by Labour’s Governance and Legal Unit that one of our candidates has been suspended from the party regarding conduct on social media.

“We will not be commenting further on this individual case any further, while this investigation is ongoing.

“Darlington Labour do not agree with or endorse the comments made by this individual in this case.

“We hold our councillors and candidates to a high standard and apologise unequivocally for the offence caused in this instance.”

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On Friday, The Labour Party said there was no update. A spokesman added: “The Labour Party does not comment on individual cases.”

Condemning the comments, North West Durham Conservative MP Richard Holden said: “Good old Sir Keir Starmer ’s Labour Party Meet David Beckett, Labour ’s candidate in Darlington’s key Brinkburn and Faverdale ward I wonder, given Sir Keir’s extensive legal experience, if he agrees with the use of the word ‘n***e’ in this context.”