Live updates: Five councillors face confidence vote over taxi rapist scandal

Live updates: Five councillors face confidence vote over taxi rapist scandal

12.58pm

The six who disagree with the motion include the five members it refers to and Councillor Liz Saggers (Scottish Conservatives).

There is now a short break before the Council considers other items on the agenda. Thank you for following this thread.

+

12.51pm

The debate finishes with a vote. 56 agree that they have no confidence in councillors Sean Kennedy, Duncan Macpherson, John Grafton, Chris Birt and Ruraidh Stewart. 6 disagree and 5 abstain.

+

12.47pm

Thomas MacLennan (Highland Independent) says “sometimes bad decisions are made by good people” but that “this wasn’t a bad decision, this was a catastrophic decision.”

Matthew Reiss of Highland Alliance appears to suggest he is willing to vote against his group leader, Duncan Macpherson, saying he has distilled it down to a simple question: “Was Brown a fit and proper person to hold this licence? The answer is no.”

Lib Dem, Trish Robertson urges members to “get back to basics” and remember the matter at hand.

+

12.45pm

Skye Councillor Ruraidh Stewart (Scottish Conservative) says he has not publicly commented on the matter and will not be “drawn into” doing so.

He says it is to the “shame” of the council that some members have disclosed parts of the meeting.

+

12.42pm

Another of the five, Duncan Macpherson (Highland Alliance), says serving on the licensing committee has been a “privilege”. He goes on to say some of what the press reported was “selective” and that “much of the public discussion has not reflected the complexity of the issues considered.”

He says he is prevented from defending himself properly as he is unable to share details of the meeting given that it was quasi-judicial.

He says what he can say is that the “motion was tabled, then an amendment offered. The legal clerk read out the options – revoke or take no action. Therefore the vote was competent and legal.”

He finishes by saying those proposing the motion, including the senior council leadership, have their “own motives”.

+

12.27pm

Councillor Duncan McDonald of the Highland Alliance questions why none of the notes from the clerks from the June meeting have been disclosed. He says everything has been done “properly” and in accordance with council policy. He then turns to the matter of the leak from the meeting, which he says “ignored proper procedures”. At this point he is heckled by another member. His statement is cut short by Convener Bill Lobban, who says he has had more than five minutes.

Skye Councillor John Finlayson (Highland Independent) says he is “concerned by the attempt made to protect certain members because of loyalty” and that in life, there is “a right, and a wrong”.

Scottish Labour’s Michael Gregson says his daughter and other young women using taxis in Inverness and elsewhere have to hear a “strong message” from the council on women’s safety.

Raasay-based Skye councillor Chrissie Gillies (Highland Independent) says she is “utterly disgusted” by some of the comments made by members and that it is up to councillors to “stand up for the people”.

+

12.06pm

Scottish Liberal Democrat Councillor Janet McEwan says she commends the whistleblower who leaked the decision to the press and that to use that as an excuse is “absolutely atrocious”. She says she supports Cllr Willie Mackay, who was one of the six who voted in favour in June. He resigned from the committee and stood down as a councillor altogether.

Michael Green of the Highland Independent group says he wasn’t going to speak but says the contributions from those defending themselves have been “excruciating” and that it is “quite simply, beyond the pale.”

Lib Dem councillor Andrew Baxter, who is also MP for Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch, says he is “beyond anger” and is “saddened”. He says it is “beyond belief” that colleagues have suggested some are voting to settle old scores and that those who made the decision in June have “lost my respect” because of their “continued self-justification.”

He says he received a WhatsApp from a colleague last night suggesting councillors were voting in favour of the motion on party political grounds. He says that is “disingenuous”.

Cllr Baxter finishes by saying his greatest fear is that those involved will continue to “sit amongst us” and think they’ve done nothing wrong.

“Shame on you,” he says.

+

11.51am

Highland Independent Morven Reid is emotional as she begins her contribution. She says she is “astonished by the justifications presented to us this morning.”

She says “had it not been for the actions of the staff in Tesco in Dingwall, she [the victim] could have perished.”

She says the best case scenario is that the five councillors “failed to understand their remit” and the worst case is that they “fully understood and chose to disregard the request from Police Scotland to revoke the licence.”

She says she intends to show the recording of today’s meeting to her teenage daughters, who she says were “already disgusted by the decision taken in June” and that they will be “utterly horrified” by what has been said today.

Her Highland Independent colleague, Laura Dundas, says the June decision has had a “significant impact” on the wider taxi industry across the Highlands. She says confidence in the licensing process has been “undermined”.

Scottish Labour councillor Andrew MacKintosh says the conduct of the committee “reflects on all of us” and that the six councillors “overstepped the remit of the committee.”

+

11.38am

Cllr Laurie Fraser (Highland Independent) says the conduct of those on the committee is “beyond the pale”. Speaking directly to the five, he says: “You have been here long enough to do any further good. You should be gone from this chamber and not darken its doors again.”

+

11.32am

We’re now hearing from the SNP’s Glynis Campbell Sinclair, who is a former chair of Inverness Women’s Aid.

She says at the core of this matter is that “a young girl has been a victim.”

She says “our first, absolute, and unyielding duty in this chamber should have been to protect her.”

She criticises members of the Highland Alliance for defending their group leader, Duncan Macpherson, who is one of the five facing the no confidence vote.

She finishes by saying she has “never, ever felt as strongly about an issue as this.”

+

11.30am

Cllr Christie’s Lib Dem colleague David Gregg says he has “never had more contact about an issue in this chamber than this one.”

He goes on to say “every single woman I know asked me about this decision and asked, ‘how did that possibly get made?'”

+

11.27am

Councillor Alasdair Christie (Lib Dem) says “an apology doesn’t cut it.”

He criticises councillors Coghill and Cross, saying their remarks were “disgraceful”, going on to ask, “what planet can you be on to make a statement like that?”

Cllr Christie says this decision is what this council term will be remembered for.

He finishes by saying the no confidence motion is about rebuilding trust, and is not a “witch hunt”, as Cllr Coghill said earlier.

He says the decision in June had one outcome: “to make a young woman suffer even more than she had done.”

+

11.20am

Another one of the five, Cllr Chris Birt, is speaking now. He says the legal advice he received on 23 June was that he had two options: to revoke the licence or to take no action.

He says it’s not unusual for the holder of a licence not to be an active taxi driver and that with Brown in prison, this was the case.

Birt goes on to say Brown’s wife was present at the meeting and she “implored” the committee to take no action as “she was using it to support herself.”

At this stage, Council Convener Bill Lobban interrupts Cllr Birt to say he is “verging into discussions about confidential information that could have a profound result.”

Cllr Birt continues, saying it is “all in the public arena.”

He says there was no risk to the public and at no time did he say that Brown was “fit and proper”.

He goes on: “It is my belief that all members of this council, despite our political differences, seek to take decisions in what we deem to be the best interests of the Highland population.”

He says some other members voted differently to him and he respects that. But he then says he suspects someone at the meeting “leaked a version” later that day.

He finishes by saying he has received correspondence from women “thanking” him for supporting Brown’s wife.

+

11.05am

We’re now hearing from the first of the five who are facing today’s no confidence motion. Cllr John Grafton was a Scottish Liberal Democrat until he was expelled by the party in the wake of the June decision.

He says the nature of the allegations people have made against him has made it “very difficult to be direct or to actually defend oneself”.

He says the decision he took in June was “not about the taxi driver being a fit and proper person. That may be wrong, yes, OK, I admit that. But I believe the decision made was about protecting the public and protecting individuals.”

He goes on to say there has been a “deluge” from the press in the last three months” and that there is too much bias to make this a “realistic vote.”

He finishes by saying he “could say a lot more” but he won’t and that he’s happy to talk to members outside of the meeting.

+

10.51am

Scottish Greens Councillor Chris Balance says this is part of a wider process.

He says the decision of Skye Councillor Drew Millar (SNP) in January 2024 to put forward an amendment to allow Brown to keep his licence was “just as wrong” and “just as derogatory towards women”.

Millar was part of the Licensing Committee at the time but had stepped down by the time of the decision in June 2026.

Cllr Balance mentions the amendment in 2024 was supported by Councillor John Bruce and that he feels it is “really important to stand up and put their names on the record because I believe they are equally morally and legally wrong in that decision.”

+

10.44am

Cllr Richard Cross of Highland Alliance says the decision was wrong but this is with the benefit of hindsight.

He says “mistakes can happen” and that the committee is no exception.

He goes on to suggest an “anonymous individual or group” leaked details to the press and asks if members can trust each other as a result.

He also says there has been “clear collusion between senior elected members” and that the full council meeting on 4 August was “designed to influence the proposed vote” and should be reported to the Standards Commission.

+

10.37am

Councillor Sinclair Coghill of the Highland Alliance is the first to indicate he won’t support the motion.

He says he wasn’t at the meeting in June and did not hear the arguments that day and therefore he “cannot come to a view on the rights and wrongs of the decision on that day.”

He says there is a “flavour of an old score being settled which I find unpalatable.”

He goes on to say he feels this is a “witch hunt” and that members might feel unsafe voting against the motion because of party loyalty, bullying and social media abuse.

He says the message to anyone thinking of becoming a councillor is “do something we don’t like and we will publicly humiliate you.”

He closes by saying he will not support the motion.

+

10.28am

Highland Independent Councillor Margaret Paterson says the decision in June was a “black day” for Highland Council and describes it as “huge, bad and unbelievable.”

“What were they thinking?” she asks.

“People trust councillors, but not now. They have no respect for us as they blame us all.”

Cllr Paterson says she is “so sad as a mother of five daughters and twelve granddaughters.”

She finishes by saying, “My heart goes out to the young teenage passenger and I admire the staff of Tesco in Dingwall who helped her when she was disorientated and distressed after being dumped on a cold and bitter night.”

+

10.23am

Highland Independent Councillor David Fraser says “accountability matters” and that “public confidence relies on elected members being prepared to recognise when mistakes are made and to take appropriate action.”

Cllr Fraser urges members not to forget the victim at the heart of the story.

+

10.21am

SNP Councillor Lyndsey Johnston is also on the licensing committee.

She says there was a “fundamental misunderstanding” by the male members of how to judge someone fit and proper.

She says the argument from some members that they took the decision in order to prevent Brown’s wife from being unable to work doesn’t come into it.

“Six men reached one conclusion, the four women on that committee reached another,” she says.

Cllr Johnston says there has been “anger across the Highlands and far beyond it” in response to the decision.

Echoing previous speakers, she says this is about “more than one bad decision” and that it is about judgement.

+

10.12am

SNP Councillor Emma Knox, who was one of the four women who voted against Brown keeping his licences, is speaking now.

She says the vote today is about much more than the decision in June.

She says the fallout has caused “continuing damage to public confidence.”

She is critical of members who discussed the case publicly, saying “we knew confidential evidence had been discussed in private” and that “we understood the importance of that confidentiality.”

She acknowledges that Councillors Stewart and Mackay did not speak publicly but says the rest gave “repeated media interventions, public statements and made ongoing attempts to justify their decision.”

Cllr Knox thanks Convener Lobban for “repeatedly reminding us that at the centre of this case is a young woman who was raped.”

She goes on to say: “Every fresh interview, every renewed news cycle, put this case back in front of her. Another headline, another front page image of the man who raped her.”

She says it is “absolutely astonishing” that Councillor Chris Birt has not stood down from the committee.

She finishes by saying the motion is not about punishment, it is about “restoring public confidence”.

+

09.59am

Council leader Raymond Bremner (SNP) says there is “little more to be added” to Convener Lobban’s statement.

He says members of the community have been “terribly affected” by the decision in June.

He urges members to accept that there is a “responsibility” on councillors to make the right decisions.

Cllr Bremner says “going forward, we cannot ever again even consider that the processes within the quasi-judicial system of this council can fail members of our community in such a way”.

He points out that all members have now received licensing training. On that point he says it is “difficult to understand how some members of the licensing committee came to the conclusion” and says that those who considered David Brown to be a “fit and proper person” were wrong.

+

09.52am

Council Convener Bill Lobban (Highland Independent) starts the meeting by saying the five councillors are responsible for a “catastrophic failure of judgement”.

He says they’ve brought “shame upon this council”.

Cllr Lobban says members of the licensing committee have “time and time again made decisions that are questionable to say the least”.

He says the message sent to women in the Highlands is that “your safety is of secondary consideration”.

The Convener says there have been “pathetic excuses” from the five councillors in recent weeks and that he has “lost faith” in them to go about their duties.

Concluding, Cllr Lobban urges the local authority to “rebuild the trust that has been shattered” and calls for members to back the motion of no confidence in Councillors Kennedy, Macpherson, Grafton, Birt and Stewart.

+

09.40am

The full council meeting is underway. Members are registering their attendance after a problem with the IT system.

Of the five, Councillors Kennedy and Stewart have joined the meeting online. Macpherson, Grafton and Birt are all in the chamber.

+

08.35am

Councillors Sean Kennedy, Duncan Macpherson, John Grafton, Chris Birt and Ruraidh Stewart are facing a vote of no confidence at Thursday’s full council meeting.

In June, six members of the Licensing Committee voted to allow convicted rapist David Brown to keep his taxi operator’s licence.

The move prompted public anger. A meeting was held on 4 August to review the decision, but Brown surrendered his licence the night before. Instead, the meeting saw Convener Bill Lobban announce that those councillors who voted for Brown to keep the licence would face a confidence vote.

The meeting is due to start at 9.35am.

Follow for updates.

Get in touch if you’ve got a story you’d like us to look into. Send a WhatsApp or send an email.