A council candidate whose old conviction of being drunk in charge of children has resurfaced says encountering real-world issues will help her serve residents.
Theresa Mackey, who is standing for Labour in tomorrow’s Kemptown by-election, admitted the charge after being found with her kids staggering, slurring her words and smelling of alcohol on the Palace Pier in 2000.
She claimed she was drunk because of drinking too much Night Nurse – a cold remedy. Magistrates gave her a conditional discharge.
In recent days, old reports of the court case have been posted on local news website comment sections and on social media.
The by-election was called after Labour councillor Bharti Gajjar resigned after being expelled from the Labour party. Shortly after she was suspended, it came to light that she had been previously sacked for working a second job while claiming to be at home caring for her son.
Ms Gajjar’s expulsion, alongside that of her daughter and fellow Labour councillor Chandni Mistry, prompted criticism of Labour’s vetting process.
Labour’s selections for last year’s elections had been undertaken by the regional party after several of the party’s 2019 candidates were subsequently suspended for anti-Semitism.
Leader of the local Labour group Bella Sankey told a council meeting this year’s selections had been done by the local party.
Ms Mackey said: “In the quarter of a century since the incident, I’ve been a Labour candidate, an Ofsted inspector, and a school governor. All these positions required vetting and due diligence for which I was deemed suitable in all cases.
“In my election communications, I stated that in the 30 years I’ve resided in Brighton, I have firsthand experience with various struggles and am dedicated to giving back to those groups that supported me, including volunteering with domestic abuse survivors.
“I believe the people of Kemptown deserve a representative who has encountered real-world issues, and I hope Kemptown Village will afford me the opportunity to continue serving my community.”
A spokesperson for the Labour Group stated, “We’re disappointed that this has been dredged up on the eve of the election with a very dubious claim of being in the public interest.
“The incident occurred over a quarter of a century ago, the party was fully aware of this when Theresa was selected and as far as we are concerned, the matter is closed.”
Being drunk in public is one thing, everyone makes mistakes in their life, but lying court with some silly story about the reason you were drunk is perhaps less excusable of a prospective councillor?
Alcohol and diphenhydramine (one of the active ingredients in Night Nurse, and also in Nytol), taken together can have a profound effect. Incidentally, Buttercups holds the claim of having the highest amount of alcohol in its product.
In the words of Father Ted: Nighty night snoozy snoo.
Labour know how to pick their council candidates, don’t they? At least she doesn’t live in Leicester…
How does she square standing for Labour if she really does care about ‘real-world’ issues? Labour has already proved they don’t care about schools, visitors, disabled residents, traditional events, beach hut owners or trying to run a successful business in this city and will prioritise VG 3 and keeping the iSore going and selling off Hove’s prime leisure centre to build tower blocks is far more important to them than delivering what residents want. Re-opening a couple of public toilets which should never have been closed down in the first place is the absolute least they can do. Now comes the cabinet council no one asked for or wanted at an estimated public cost of £80,000.
How does anyone square voting for the Tories after they have raped our country for 14 years? When are they going to bring Michelle Mone to court for the money she stole during Covid? How about Bojo’s illegitimate daughter in the House of Lords? Or is it his fathers?
If Labour think the summer of 2020 is ‘over a quarter of a century ago’ it is no wonder their sums don’t add up. And the story is hardly ‘dredged up’. If you google this Preston Park resident it is pretty much the first thing you read.
Where are you getting 2020 from? The linked article in The Argus about the case was published in December 2000.
Typo I’m afraid 😟 The point remains not quarter of a cemtury.
Better than you reading skills!
And your writing skills!
Funny how sometimes you can say, ‘the matter is now closed’, and yet other times a persons misdemeanors are talked about endlessly. I guess it depends on your politics!?
Free glass of Night Nurse with every vote !
The candidate’s comments did a good job of allaying my initial concerns as this has been all over social media. Most people deserve a second chance. Then I read the patronising, peevish and petty comment from Labour near the end of the story. They just don’t get it, do they! What a snarky response to genuine and proper public concern. Sorry, but I can’t vote for Labour again while they’re being so arrogant, rude and condescending.
It would seem that criminals are drawn towards being politicians. At least she’s got some practise in before possibly being elected. Unfortunately, this is a global problem with the quality of those who put themselves forward to administer democracy being of a very low calibre.
Met her twice, seems lost and out of her depth. Only selected because she will follow her Labour masters and do as is told. Please, anyone but her – unless you want another absent Labour councillor in Kemptown
It was 25 years ago, most of us make mistakes during a long period like that. Ms Mackey has held many positions of responsibility since. I wish her well with her new role and look forward to the changes she will make in Kemptown.