‘We do not wish to be associated with the comments made by Councillor Miller.’

Elm Park Councillors Stephanie Nunn and Barry Mugglestone have written to the Havering Daily distancing themselves from the comments made by Councillor Sally Miller at a Crime and Disorder Sub Committee meeting last week in regards to knife crime.

The two councillors write as follows:

How disappointed we were to see the article about Elm Park Ward Councillor Sally Miller chairing the Crime and Disorder Sub-Committee and then to watch the meeting on the webcast.  

As Chair, she so lightly dismissed an incident where a blade, knife or machete were used, as only ‘a scratch’, this is not acceptable.  What was the victim thinking when the incident was happening, and afterwards, what were they thinking?

Oh, it was only a scratch – we don’t think so, it must have been very frightening. Councillor Miller goes on in the meeting to inform the Committee and the resident who was watching the webcast that they should disregard what the Havering Daily puts out and stated it’s generally rubbish and is exaggerated. We might not have continued to follow Havering Daily if we had listened to Councillor Miller, but thankfully we know our local media give factual and unbiased stories.

The main point of this is that we need to take all knife crime seriously and not to refer to any incident of this nature so dismissively as only ‘a scratch’.  

We as Elm Park Ward Councillors, do not wish to be associated with the comments of Councillor Sally Miller.

Cllr Barry Mugglestone

Cllr Stephanie Nunn