Yahoo News Election candidate reports objections to his planning application to police
An election candidate in Oldham claims he's been the victim of 'hate speech' after comments made about a planning application - and has made a report to police.
Independent candidate Paul ‘Boots’ Errock submitted his application for three new homes on three Burnedge Lane. The plans saw a backlash online and received five objections related to the nearby greenbelt land.
But Errock claimed the comments were part of a “smear campaign” and reported one resident to police for “malicious communications”. GMP have since said the investigation has now been concluded and “no suspect found”.
But in a message to the M.E.N., Mr Errock said: “These ‘objections’ were received following a post … on Social Media, which is in clear breach of the Malicious Communications Act 1997."
He added that the allegations "are false, malicious and contravene hate speech laws, The malicious communications Act (1988), and Protection from Harassment Act 1997.
“My own application does NOT breach any Greenbelt [sic] whatsoever, and this is simply a smear campaign seeking to score points by spreading malicious, false communications, which is intended to cause harassment, alarm and distress.”
Neighbours had raised concerns over the application - calling the three-storey, four-bedroom homes “humongous”, “ludicrous” and “excessive”.
One comment read: “Despite the buildings not being in that particular area they will have a detrimental impact on the green belt as a result of their general height and excessive size.” Others raised concerns about road safety on a “bad bend” with “overcrowding” right next to the proposed homes.
Mr Errock, whose policies include the protection of green belt land, defended his application, claiming ‘false information’ had been spread online using depictions from another address for ‘political gain’. When asked to elaborate on his claims, Mr Errock accused the M.E.N. of “political mischief” and threatened to report the publication for hate speech and harassment too.
The application was due to be considered by June 10 but a formal decision is yet to be issued.
