Mayor of Hertsmere Cllr Anne Swerling
- Credit: HBC
The mayoral chains have been passed on to Councillor Anne Swerling as she takes over from Cllr Alan Plancey in the role of mayor of Hertsmere for the next year.
She was inaugurated at the annual council meeting last night (Wednesday, May 19), when the new deputy mayor, Cllr John Graham, was also welcomed.
Deputy mayor of Hertsmere cllr John Graham
- Credit: HBC
At the meeting, former mayor, Cllr Alan Plancey, whose own appointment last year became a heated event over accusations of homophobia, talked about his role during the pandemic and lockdown, as well as raising money for his chosen charities: Herts Mind Network and Camp Simcha.
Mayor of Hertsmere, Cllr Alan Plancey
- Credit: Hertsmere Borough Council
The Hertsmere Conservative Association has handed out a leaflet which contains an article calling for an apology from Hertsmere Labour over homophobic mayor slurs .
However, the Labour councillors who accused Mayor Cllr Alan Plancey of previously making homophobic comments believe they owe no apologies for challenging language they believe to be homophobic.
The issue began in November 2020 when Cllr Alan Plancey was elected as mayor of Hertsmere, and was accused by Hertsmere Labour of making homophobic comments in a video from 2014.
Now, Hertsmere Conservatives want an apology from Cllr Chris Gray and Cllr Chris Meyers for what they describe as a dirty tricks campaign .