A COUNCILLOR who made a racist comments will face no further action, a tribunal ruled yesterday.

Monmouthshire councillor John Major breached the councillors’ code of conduct three times while sitting on a mock-interview panel when he said one of the interviewees was a “good candidate, shame he’s black”.

An Adjudication Panel for Wales hearing also heard Cllr Major had referred to a fellow member of Magor with Undy Community Council as “almost half a wog”, but this was not deemed to be a breach of the code as it happened after the council meeting had finished.

The panel met at Newport's Hilton Hotel yesterday after an initial hearing was opened and adjourned in November last year.

Cllr Major, 79, admitted he made reference to the race of a candidate being interviewed during a mock-interview exercise set up by Monmouthshire council to appoint a new chief executive on May 21 2009, but denied he said anything racist or discriminatory.

Cllr Major claimed he said the interviewee was a “good candidate, and he’s black”, but Cllr Armand Watts told the tribunal in November that he actually said “shame he’s black”.

Cllr Simon Howarth yesterday supported Cllr Watts' version of events which was accepted by the panel.

Chairwoman Helen Cole said Cllr Major had made remarks that were “discriminatory, racist and inappropriate”, and breached the code of conduct by failing to carry out his duties with due regard to the principle of equal opportunities, failing to show respect and consideration for others, and bringing his office and the authority into disrepute.

A second allegation from community Cllr Lyn Cadwallader alleged that after a meeting of Magor with Undy Community Council on June 1 2009, Cllr Major said Cllr Cadwallader was “almost half a wog”.

Cllr Major later apologised, but allegedly followed up the apology by saying “you can’t possibly be one of those with a surname like Cadwallader”.

But Cllr Major said he had only used the words “half wog” in reference to Cllr Cadwallader’s sun tan because he had recently returned from holiday, and that his later comment was actually “with a surname like yours, you cannot be accused of anything but being a Welshman”.

Ms Cole said the panel accepted Cllr Cadwallader’s version of events, but that Cllr Major’s actions did not amount to a breach of the code because the events happened after the council meeting had finished.

The panel said no further action would be taken in relation to the breaches committed in the first allegation.

Cllr Major's legal representative Richard Payne said he was a dedicated public servant who had served as a county and community council for 32 years and that this was the first complaint recorded against him.

Mr Payne added: “Cllr Major is 79, and has had a back ground in the forces and police service where certainly in the 1970s, 60s and 50s standards of language were completely different from today.”

  • SPEAKING after the panel’s ruling, Cllr Major said he was “delighted” no further action would be taken against him, and he was looking forward to getting back to his work as a councillor.

He added: “I never have been racist.”