Cornwall Council’s standards committee will meet next week to decide what action to take after a councillor refused to apologise twice for comments made about protesters.

Dulcie Tudor, who represents Threemilestone and Gloweth, was subject of a formal complaint last summer about comments she made in an interview about public protests about the overdevelopment of Cornwall.

Cllr Tudor had said that she agreed with some of the points which had been made by the protesters but suggested that they should direct their concerns to central government as they concerned issues around national planning guidelines.

However she also added that a “few select people here who are some sort of sinister underbelly of Cornish nationalists”.

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The comment led to a formal complaint to the council in July 2019 and resulted in Cllr Tudor being found to have breached the council’s code of conduct.

She was recommended to make a public apology within 28 days but she refused to do so.

As a result another complaint was lodged in November 2019 about Cllr Tudor’s failure to apologise. That complaint was assessed in January and she was again found to have breached the code.

Again the council ordered the Liberal Democrat councillor to apologise within 28 days and, again, she chose not to.

Now the matter is set to go before the council’s standards committee next Tuesday (July 21) when councillors will decide what action should be taken.

Cllr Tudor has publicly stated that she will not apologise and also revealed how she was sent photos of men’s bellies in response to her comments.

She also revealed how she had been subjected to abuse from members of the public and said how she felt she had been targeted as a female councillor.

Cllr Tudor said at the time: “I didn’t label all the protesters as sinister. I do agree that there is over development in Cornwall, it is one of the reasons I became a councillor.

“I think (what happened) is really unfortunate as it is not what I am about as a councillor.

“I have been asked to apologise but I can’t. I am absolutely not going to apologise to those people.

“For almost two years I have been getting abusive emails, hate mail from these people. I do regard them as sinister.

“I suppose you do have to expect it a bit as a councillor. The other stuff accuses me of being an estate agent, or benefitting from decisions at planning committee – and that is damaging.”

At the standards committee next week councillors will hear from the council’s head of legal before then hearing a submission from Cllr Tudor.

The committee will then go into private session and debate and determine if they wish to take any further action and, if so, what action that will be.

Councillors will then go back into public session and announce their decision and the reasons for it.

Cornwall Council’s standards committee will meet online next Tuesday (July 21).